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by niazn
Summary: This fanfic revolves around our fave diner boys, Jess Mariano and Luke Danes. What will happen when Liz tries to regain custody of Jess? Gilmore Girls. Jess and Luke bonding.
1. Chapter 1

_Hey guys! This is my first Gilmore Girls fanfic, please leave me a review! Enjoy!_

"Jess it's noon, wake up you lazy bum", Luke shakes his nephew for about the ninth time this morning. Jess groans and stretches his arms, then finally sits up.

"I was beginning to think you were dead, crazy night last night?" Luke asks him, referring to the party he went to last night.

"You have no idea", Jess mumbles, thinking about the crazy party and the even crazier night he had with his girlfriend, Shane. Jess drags himself to the bathroom and groans even louder when he sees his reflection. "Damn, I need a shower", he says out loud.

"I couldn't agree more, Prince Charming. Do me a favor, make yourself look presentable then come help me downstairs for a bit. Can you do that, Jess?"

"Yeah, alright, whatever", Jess mutters, still half asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Jess's POV:

I walk downstairs to a fully packed diner. I see Luke standing behind the counter talking to a customer. I walk up next to him.

"It took you an hour and twenty minutes to get ready?" he asks me amazed. "What can I say? My hair just wasn't bouncing and behaving today", I reply. He runs his fingers through my hair and ruffles it. "Hey!" I retorted. He laughs then tells me to work the counter.

I grab a cloth and start wiping the counter when the bell above the door chimes signaling more people coming in. The Gilmores walk in and sit down at the counter. "Hey Luke, I can't handle these two on my own! Little help?" I call to Luke who's clearing tables. Luke looks up to see what I'm talking about then rolls his eyes when he sees Lorelai and Rory waving at him. He walks over and says, "What are you two doing in here? You had your coffee this morning". "We came back for more", Lorelai replies enthusiastically. "Yeah we only had three cups this morning, when we usually have around four", Rory adds. "This stuff kills you", Luke remarks, but pours them each a cup. "Thanks Luke, you're a life-saver!" Lorelai exclaims. He scoffs.

After a few minutes of listening to Luke and Lorelai talk nonsense about some TV show and Rory just sitting there eating her food, the bell chimes again. Shane walks through the door with a very noticeable hickey on her neck.

"Hey you", she greets, grabbing my face, pulling me into a kiss. I pull away before Luke sees. "Are you trying to get me grounded again?" I ask her, getting annoyed. "But I'm bored, come on Jess, why don't we go back to where we left off last night, doesn't that sound good?" she giggles. "Shane, I'm working, I promise we'll do something later", I sigh. She, of course, doesn't listen and starts making out with me for like a whole twenty seconds. I feel a tap on my shoulder and I finally pull out of the never-ending kiss to see Luke standing behind me. I sigh. "Grounded?" I ask. "Oh, yeah", he confirms with a nod, and then walks away. "Shane, you should just go", I decide. "You're no fun", she whines. Before she exits, she blows me a kiss and I roll my eyes.

Closing time could not come sooner, by the end of the day, I'm exhausted. I watch Luke say goodbye to the last group of people in the diner then breathe a sigh of relief when he finally changes the sign from 'open' to 'closed'. "Today went on forever", I comment as Luke and I flip the chairs upside down on top of the table.

"So, Shane came in today", Luke remarks, smirking.

"Don't remind me", I groan.

"Other than that public display of affection, you did good today, you only made two customers storm out in dismay rather than the usual three", Luke notes, laughing.

"Speaking of, how long am I grounded?", I ask. Luke looks like he's deciding. "I'm thinking a week", he answers. "You must be really lonely that you constantly feel the need to ground me, just so I'll stay home with you", I say. "Yeah Jess, you caught me. I'm so lonely that I want to extend our time together to two weeks, how does that sound?", Luke replies, smirking. "It sounds like I should probably stop talking now. Am I done for the night?", I ask. "Go upstairs, I'll be there in a minute", he replies.


	3. Chapter 3

"Jess, did you set the table?", Luke asks, coming through the apartment door. Jess doesn't look up from his book. "Jess!", Luke snaps. "What?", he finally responds.

"I asked you if you set the table"

"Is it so hard to look at the table and decide whether it's set or not?"

"We agreed that every Saturday night we would sit down, like a normal family, and have dinner. Now get your ass over to this goddamned table"

"Luke, it's almost midnight. You can't seriously expect me to have dinner at midnight every Saturday", Jess argues. "Have you eaten yet?", Luke asks. "Well no, but-", Jess begins but Luke cuts him off. "No buts, over here, now", he commands.

Jess reluctantly sits down at the table while Luke heats up left over Chinese food from two nights ago. "There was something I needed to talk to you about, Jess", Luke begins. Sentences like that never ended well for Jess; it either meant that he had done something wrong or someone had died. Luke pours the food onto two plates and puts a plate in front of Jess. "What did you want to talk about?", he asks, trying to sound casual.

"You've been living here for a while. You've been going to school and helping me out a lot, and all in all I think you're a completely different person than that annoying kid who got off the bus from New York City, almost a year ago", Luke begins.

"Come on, please don't get all sentimental", Jess pleaded.

"Do you like it here, Jess? Are you in a comfortable environment, I mean?", Luke asks. He isn't sure how to respond. Of course he's in a comfortable environment and he loves being with Luke, it's the best home life he has ever had.

"I'm fine", he casually concludes. Luke isn't happy with that response, he was hoping for 'great' or 'wonderful'. "Just fine? Not even a little great?", he asks. "I'm great, I'm perfect, where is this going?", Jess adds, impatiently. Luke takes a deep breath, not sure how Jess is going to respond to what he says next. "Jess, would you mind if I became your _legal_ guardian, if we like made it official?", Luke asks, his heart beating out of his chest, awaiting Jess's response. He doesn't say anything for a second. "Sure, why not?", he finally answers. Luke is ecstatic. "I'm so happy you said that, Jess. Now, I just need to get some paperwork from Liz, and it'll be official", Luke babbles. Although he put on a straight face on the outside, Jess was smiling ear-to-ear on the inside. He no longer had to deal with Liz or any of her boyfriends, it was all over. Luke pulls Jess into an awkward hug and thats just about crossing Jess's comfort zone. He's never been one to like being touched.

"What time do I need to come in tomorrow for work?", Jess asks, beginning to clear the dishes. "I was thinking maybe I could close the diner tomorrow, and we could go fishing or something?", he offers.

"I can't", Jess states.

"Why not?"

"I'm grounded, remember?", Jess smirks. "Your grounding is lifted for the day", he replies, rolling his eyes. Jess happily returns to his usual spot on the couch, with a book in hand. Luke just watches Jess read for a bit, feeling a sense of pride that the kid was going to officially be his responsibility.


	4. Chapter 4

_Hey guys! Thanks for leaving me some reviews! I love reading them! This is probably going to be a long fanfic, so enjoy!_

* * *

 **Narrator's POV** :

"Jess, grab a jacket", Luke nagged, grabbing his fishing equipment. "Don't need one", Jess replied, grabbing a book. He knew that these fishing trips meant a lot to Luke, especially this one because Jess had agreed to Luke being his official guardian, but Jess honestly was just happy to get out of work for the day.

"Take these down to the truck", Luke says, handing Jess a few bottles of water. Jess takes the bottles and drops them when his phone goes off for the 35th time in the past five minutes. Luke was fed up with the annoying ding that he heard every time Jess got a text. "Give me your phone", Luke orders. "I'll put it on vibrate, Luke, come on", Jess tries. The phone goes off again and Luke just reaches into his nephew's pocket and takes the phone. He begins to read the texts. "Jess, ditch that lame-ass diner, lets make out. I'm in the mood for some...", Luke reads the text messages out loud making a face of disgust. Jess cracks a half-smile, "What can I say, I always leave them wanting more", he smirks. "On that nauseating note, get in the truck, I'll bring the rest of the stuff down myself", Luke orders. Jess smiles to himself, realizing that he got out of helping, then goes down to the truck, ignoring the group of people huddled outside of diner. When Jess opens the door to exit, he's immediately bombarded with questions on why the diner is closed. He ignores all of them but before getting into the truck he states, "You people need lives".

* * *

 **Luke's POV** :

I row the canoe out in the lake and put bait on my line and do the same for Jess, who's reading a book. I hand him the fishing line and he takes it with one hand still not looking up.

"Jess, put the book down, fishing requires complete concentration"

The boy reluctantly puts the book down and takes the line with two hands. "You know what I love about these fishing trips?", I ask. "Fascinate me", he mumbles, bored. "You're forced to talk to me and you have nowhere to go to try and get out of a conversation", I answer, smiling. Jess rolls his eyes.

"So tell me about Shane"

"Nothing to tell"

"What do you mean there's nothing to tell? You two have been going out for almost two months now"

"She's a good kisser", Jess shrugs.

"That's all you have to say about her? Nothing about her personality? What's she like?"

"A good kisser"

"Nothing else?"

"Oh, she's good at some other things but I _really_ don't think you want to hear about them", he smirks.

I roll my eyes and change the subject before I get any details. "So, have you heard from your mom?", I ask. I see Jess uncomfortably look down at his shoes, I notice he does that every time I mention her. "What do you think?", he asks sarcastically, trying to hide his frustration.

"Well, she called me yesterday at like three in the morning", I tell him.

"I didn't hear the phone ring"

"You sleep like a dead person"

"Well, what did she want?", Jess asks, trying really hard not to show interest.

"I was going to wait to tell her later, but I told her about how I wanted to get full custody of you and sort of make it official. She didn't really object it or argue but she said she wanted you to visit before it was really official"

"Why? She never calls me, or checks up on me. Christmas was three months ago, she didn't even bother to call", Jess begins, his voice getting louder and louder, the frustration in his voice, growing more and more.

"Jess, calm down, it's just one visit. That's all. Then it's over. Then the only thing you have to worry about is staying out of trouble so I don't beat your ass", I joke, trying to make light of the situation.

"Whatever", he mumbles, sounding defeated.


	5. Chapter 5

**Luke's POV** :

"Jess, you got everything?", I ask for the 25th time.

"Who cares?", he replies.

"Come on, don't be like that, it's only two nights. You're in, you're out, you're back", I try cheering him up. This is the first time he has gone back home to visit ever since he came to live with me.

"Have fun, don't give your mom a hard time", I remind him as he gets ready, putting his backpack on.

"My mom and whatever loser she's sleeping with for the week", he mutters.

"See you soon!", I wave.

He gives a slight wave on his way out the diner door then shoves past everybody while saying, "get out of my way".

* * *

"No Jess today?", Lorelai asks as I pour her coffee.

"He's visiting his mom in New York for a few days", I tell her.

"Well that's good", she says.

"If it were up to me, he wouldn't be allowed near that psycho but I don't want any trouble with Liz with paperwork and everything and this one visit was her only condition"

"So Jess was okay with the idea of permanently living here?"

"He seemed okay with it, but he wasn't too happy about visiting his mom"

"He'll be okay", she reassures me. "I hope so, I don't think he minds Liz as much as he minds whichever guy Liz decides to bring home", I reply. She smiles and puts her hand on my hand, comforting me.


	6. Chapter 6

_Hey guys, sorry for not updating. Thank you so much for leaving me reviews. I tried to make this chapter a little longer, I guess I thought you guys would rather have shorter chapters but a greater amount of them. I did that so you would take notice of a time skip. But from now on I'll make the chapters longer. Leave me a review of your thoughts please or if you have any suggestions, I love reading them, they motivate me to write! Happy thanksgiving :)_

* * *

 **Jess's POV:**

I take a deep breath and knock on the door, after waiting for a minute and still no answer, I check to make sure I'm at the right address. Apartment 3b, yep, this is the address my mom gave me. Finally the door swings open and my mom gives me a hug. I flinch.

"Jess! I'm so happy you're here! Come in, come in!", she squeals. I follow her inside a tiny apartment with dirt all over the walls, furniture being held together by duct tape, and the only source of natural light is coming from a window, smaller than my head. "So, how do you like your new apartment?", I ask, attempting to break the awkward silence. "It's not much, but its enough for me and Frank", she replies.

"Frank?"

"He's my boyfriend, let me tell you Jess, I think he's going to be the one!"

"The one that you date for longer than a week, or the one who doesn't steal the tv?", I mutter under my breath.

"Frank should be back from work any minute now, I'm so excited for you two to meet! My two favorite guys together!", she exclaims. I sit down on the couch and it squeaks. "I should call Luke, he said to call when I get here", I tell her, taking out my cell phone. I walk into another room and close the door. It rings twice then the familiar sound of the diner lunch rush comes in the background and Luke says, "Hello". "It's Jess", I say.

"Jess! Did you get there alright?"

"Yep"

"How's Liz? How's her new apartment?"

"The apartment's gross and Liz is... sober to say the least"

"Just two more days, Jess, suck it up"

"Whatever. Listen, I gotta go I just called to say I got here okay. I'm about to meet Frank, my next 'daddy'", I say sarcastically.

"Good luck, keep me updated, I'll see you soon"

"Bye".

I walk back out to my mom and she's sitting on the couch smoking a cigarette. I sit down across from her and take out a book. "Want one?", she asks. I shake my head no, not looking up. "Put down the book, let's talk, I haven't seen you in forever", she says. I roll my eyes and close the book. She stares at me, waiting for me to say something. "Why am I here? Why did you drag me here?", I finally ask. "Because you're my son and I love you", she replies. I can feel myself getting angrier and angrier.

"Hey, mom! What day is it? Tuesday, the 29th of March. About three months after Christmas, several months after my birthday, and throughout all those months I didn't get a single call from you. You wanna start loving me now?", I scoff.

"Well, be happy, you're not going to have to deal with me anymore after this visit, Luke's got you wrapped around his finger"

"How the hell am I supposed to be happy? You drag me out here, to this lame excuse of a shelter, for what? Just to remind me that I came out of you?", I yell. She starts to cry and that just makes me angrier. She sobs and sobs, as if she's waiting for me to apologize or feel sorry for her. The only thing that shuts her up is when the door swings open, and a whiff of cigarette smoke and beer fills the apartment in less than a second.

I turn around to see a middle-aged man standing in the doorway. "Frank! Come meet my son", my mom sniffles, wiping her eyes. "You been crying?", he asks, ignoring me. "Jess and I just got into a little argument", she explains. He turns to me. "Who the hell are you?", he asks. I'm amazed at the stupidity level of this man. "Jess.", I state. "Listen here, Jess. If you wanna come stay in my house, you will not make my girlfriend cry, understand?", he rages. "Well that's the problem, I don't wanna be here", I laugh, taking out my book. He yanks my book out of my hands and throws it across the room. "What the hell is wrong with you?", I shout.

"Get up, punk"

"You're freaking drunk! Mom, are you even going to say anything to him?"

"Frank, honey, settle down. It's alright, I'm okay", she finally says. Amazed at what just happened and my mom's behavior towards it, I grab my coat, pick up my book from the floor, and walk to the door. "I'm going out for a walk", I mumble.

I walk through the streets of New York City, giving me a major feeling of deja vu. As a kid, after a physical argument with one of my mom's boyfriends (which happened very often) I would walk down the sidewalk, choose a place to read, and cool down for the next few hours or so. The only difference is, today, I don't have to steal ice from a beverage cart to numb the pains of the bruises I would have.

I choose a spot on a bench under a tree. For some reason, I can't concentrate on reading today, my mind keeps going back to Luke. He's probably arguing with a customer right now. If I were there, I would probably be ignoring a customer and he would be yelling at me. I can't help but smile at the thought of Luke in his plaid shirt and baseball cap. I give him a hard time but I know I'm really lucky to have him. Just the thought of Luke gives me the motivation to go back to the apartment, the quicker I deal with the issues between my mom and I, the quicker I could get the hell out of here.

* * *

I walk into the apartment. "Mom?", I say, looking around the empty apartment. Frank comes out of one of the rooms. "She went out", he snarled. I nod. He takes a step closer to me. "Are you ready to apologize for your behavior?", he asks. Every part of my brain is screaming at me to take a step back, but that would show fear. "You don't even know what happened", I sneer, walking towards the fridge for a drink. He follows me, and without warning, he slams my head into the refrigerator. My head throbs in pain. I throw a punch but he grabs my hand and twists it, then finally throws me down to the floor. I stare at him, smirking at me. "Next time you talk back to me, I won't be as kind", he barks. Then walks out of the apartment, leaving me collapsed on the floor with a pounding head, and a sharp, jarring pain in my arm. My eyes became watery with the sheer pain and my breaths came out in sharp, shallow rasps.

* * *

The day following my 'confrontation' with Frank started off without a bang. I hadn't spoken to my mom since the first argument I had with her, yesterday. At breakfast I kept clenching my arm, Liz didn't notice but Frank did. He would smirk everytime I would cringe in pain. Due to my massive headache, I didn't even have the energy to shoot him a look. Liz probably didn't notice because she was hungover. The sober period had ended and she was probably out all night drinking. I slept on the couch and never heard her come in. After breakfast, she took five pain killers and fell asleep on the couch. Frank had gone to work so I didn't have to keep looking over my shoulder making sure he's not holding a frying pan over my head or anything. Besides the fact that I had been looking for my phone the whole morning, nothing really happened. Liz would wake up every hour or so and mumble something. Occasionally she would say something about me and one of the times she mumbled something about loving me and never wanting to let me go. I couldn't help but roll my eyes. She dragged me all the way to New York City claiming she wanted to spend time with me and hasn't said a word to me since yesterday. I sat on the couch basically immobile. My head was pounding too much to walk around, my arm was in so much pain that I couldn't even hold a book, and I didn't even have a phone to call Luke. I was stuck in this apartment. I stared down at my right arm, which was swelling up to double the size of my left arm. Black and blue bruises were starting to form. Frank is a lot stronger than he looks.

Liz eventually woke up. "Jess", she kept muttering. I kept saying 'what' but she would just mutter my name again then fall back asleep. I finally figured out how to hold my book with one hand and flip the pages with the same hand without the book closing, so I spent the day reading. Before I knew it, it was five pm and Frank was home. The door swung open and once again, the aroma of smoke and alcohol filled the apartment. "She been out cold the whole day?", he asks. I ignore him and continue reading my book. He walks in front of me and yanks the book out of my hand. "What the hell do you want from me?", I groan. He smacks my already throbbing head with the 674-page book. "Asshole, I asked you a question", he slurred. I get up from the couch and attempt to take the book from him, he kicks my leg and I fall back. I let out a yelp of pain then lay helplessly on the ground for a second then pull myself up with one arm. I look back at Liz who's still passed out on the couch. Then I look back at Frank, who's smoking a cigarette and reading a newspaper as if he didn't just make me handicapped.


	7. Chapter 7

_Hey guys! Sorry for the lack of updates, there's lots of things going on in this chapter. Enjoy!_

 **Jess's POV:**

The past three days felt like a month. But it was finally here, the day I could go back to Luke and finally be done with my mom once and for all. My arm and knee still hadn't gotten any better, I think they may be broken or fractured. But thankfully, my head had stopped throbbing. I'm packing my backpack up when Frank approaches me. "Your phone must have somehow ended up in my room", he says, smirking, handing me my phone. I grab it and don't say anything. He probably took it so I wouldn't call Luke or the police. He didn't have to worry about that though, I don't plan on telling Luke what happened, I've never even told a soul about my abusive childhood. I hate pity. My mom comes into the kitchen with tears in her eyes. "Jess, I'm so happy you visited", she says. I guess she's sober again.

"Yeah, visit more often", Frank adds, smiling the fakest smile I've ever seen.

"Yeah, definitely", I lie, smiling back.

"I just wish we had more time, the past few days flew by!", my mom exclaims.

"Maybe cause you were passed out for two of them", I mutter under my breath. My mom goes on about how much she loves me and i keep nodding and mutter the occasional 'yeah' but I'm not really paying attention.

"Well, better get going, don't wanna miss my bus", I say.

"Okay, be safe! Love you Jess!", she gushes, then pulls me into a hug. I don't really mind her when she's sober, too bad it only happens 1/3 of the time. I awkwardly pat her back. "Love you too", I say quietly. I guess I meant it a little, she is my mom after all. But if I had to choose to live with Luke or my mom (even without her boyfriend), I wouldn't even have to think for a second, my answer will always be Luke. I give a small wave on my way out then close the door. I hear her sobbing through the closed door. I lug my backpack on the one shoulder that doesn't feel like it's been slammed into a wall nine million times, and make my way to the bus stop. This visit was three days too long.

* * *

I get off the bus and to find Luke waiting for me with a big smile on his face. "Jess!", he exclaims, waving frantically. "Hey", I say. He takes my backpack and we begin to walk to the diner. I hate to admit it, but I really missed this quiet town.

"How was it?"

"How was what?"

"Your mom, New York City, The visit in general"

"It was fine"

"So your mom was good?"

"She was fine", I mumble. I try to hide my anger as I think back to how the last three days played out. I basically spent them avoiding my drunk mom, avoiding her psychopath of a boyfriend, and just sitting on an uncomfortable couch, in a hot and stuffy apartment, reading a book. We walk into the diner and the first thing I see is Lorelai and Rory sitting at the counter. "Guess who I found", Luke says, pointing to me. "Hey Jess", Lorelai greets. "How was New York City?", Rory adds. "It was fine", I answer. Luke rolls his eyes. "Alright, you're obviously not in the mood to talk, we'll leave you alone, you're free to go", Luke jokes. I try to cover up my limp from when Frank kicked me down, as I go up the stairs. I open the apartment door and for a second all the pain goes away, I feel safe. The feeling that left my system for three days had come back, and it felt pretty good.

I set my backpack on the floor and lay down in my bed, staring at the ceiling, and clenching my, still throbbing, arm. After a few minutes of staring at the ceiling and contemplating life, Luke comes in. "Jess, Shane's downstairs", he tells me. "Tell her I'm not here", I reply.

"I already told her you're upstairs"

"I don't care what you tell her, just get rid of her", I grumble. Luke sighs and sits down on my bed. I continue to lay down and stare at the ceiling. "Jess, are you okay? You seem... I don't know, angrier than usual", he says, sounding genuinely concerned.

"I'm..."

"Fine, I know", he interrupts, rolling his eyes. I sit up on the bed next to Luke.

"I'm just tired, okay?"

"Okay, I'll tell her you're not feeling well. Why don't you come downstairs after you rest a little? I'll make you a sandwich or something", he offers. I nod and he pats my shoulder. I grimace in pain, but he doesn't notice.

Once he leaves, I turn on the stereo and close my eyes. I remind myself that it's all over and that I no longer need to worry about my mom or anyone else. It's just gonna be me and Luke. And to me, that sounds perfect.

* * *

I limp downstairs and thankfully, the diner's not too crowded so I have less people to avoid getting into a conversation with. It's now dark outside, it was like two pm when I fell asleep. I approach the counter. "What time is it?", I ask Luke. "7:34, I tried waking you up two hours ago but I can only shake you so much", he chuckles. I sit down at the counter. "Can you make me a grilled cheese?", I ask, yawning. "Sure, sleeping beauty. Now that you got your beauty sleep, wanna actually take part in a conversation?", he replies, beginning to make me the sandwich. "You're really annoying, you know that?", I answer. "Wow, a whole sentence. I think that's the record for today", he responds. The microwave beeps and Luke places the grilled cheese in front of me. It takes me less than two minutes to devour it. "Wash off the plate when you're done", Luke tells me. I pick up the plate with my one uninjured arm then attempt to rinse it off, but I end up dropping it on the floor and it breaks. The chef, Cesar, rolls his eyes and begins to clean up the mess and mutters something in Italian or Spanish or whichever language he speaks. Luke rushes to the kitchen. "What was that noise? Are you okay?", he asks. "I just dropped a plate, relax", I mumble.

"If _you_ dropped it, why is Cesar cleaning it up?"

"Why don't you ask him?"

"Jess, I've been pretty lenient with your attitude for today, but I've had enough! What's going on with you?"

"I told you already, I'm just tired! Jeez!"

I walk away from him, but he follows me. "Stop!", he orders. I sigh and turn around. I wait for him to begin the lecture and sure enough... "You can't avoid talking to me forever. You've been acting strange the second you got off that bus. This isn't you. This is maybe the old you, but not the you that I can accept. This whole attitude of yours, has got to go away. Am I understood, Jess?", Luke lectures. I roll my eyes and nod. "I didn't hear a yes", he adds. "Yes", I answer, hoping he hears the anger in my voice. "Good", he states. "Can I go now?", I ask. "Nope, you can sit at the counter, I wanna keep an eye on you", he answers. He walks out of the kitchen and I follow him.

"Come on, Luke! What am I supposed to do? Sit here and do nothing?"

"You're right! You can do the dishes!", he remarks, smiling. I begin to protest and he throws the washing cloth to me.

I sigh and walk back into the kitchen. How am I supposed to do dishes with one arm? My eyes go to Cesar who's about to leave for the night. "Cesar, Luke says you have to finish up the dishes", I lie. The man puts down his coat then puts gloves back on, glaring at me. I sneak past Luke and walk outside.

My limp has been getting better, it still hurts but it's not bad enough to ruin my night. I take out my cell phone and call Shane. I tell her to meet me at the nearest bar. This is the first time in a long time that I'm actually going to have some fun.

* * *

 **Luke's POV:**

Cesar had just left, not looking too happy for some reason, and the diner was pretty quiet. I decide to check on Jess, I hadn't heard from him since I told him to wash the dishes, and surprisingly, he did them without protest. I walk into the spotless kitchen with no dirty dishes anywhere in sight. I half expected to find Jess asleep on the floor but he wasn't in the kitchen either. He probably went back upstairs. I decide to give him some space, he had listened, after all.

Lorelei comes into the diner and sits at the counter. "Need. Coffee. Now.", she demands. I pour her a cup of coffee and she drinks half of it in one sip. "Thank you!", she exclaims. "What's up with you?", I ask. "I just got back from dinner at my parents' house", she explains. I nod supportively, wiping the counter. "So how's Jess?", she asks. "I honestly don't even know anymore, I don't know if I'm being too tough or not tough enough, he just seems out of it ever since he got back from New York", I admit. "Well, he's a teenager, they're supposed to be rude and obnoxious", she replies. "Believe me, I know. But lately, he just seems annoyed all the time", I say. "Just give it some time", she suggests. "You're probably right", I tell her. The phone rings and I pick it up.

"Hello."

"It's me, Jess", the voice says nervously. I can already tell something's wrong.

"Jess? Where are you? I thought you were upstairs. Are you okay?"

"Don't freak out but I got in a little fight... and I got arrested", Jess stutters over the phone.

"How the hell did you get arrested? When did you even leave?"

"Look, I don't have time for 20 questions right now, can you just come and pick me up?"

"I'm on my way", I tell him, then hang up.

Lorelai stares at me as I furiously grab my keys and cell phone. "Everything okay?", she asks me.

"No. Everything is not okay. Jess got arrested and I have to go pick him up", I answer.

"Arrested? For what?", she asks.

"He said he got into a fight but I doubt that's the whole story", I say, putting on a jacket.

"Good luck, I can watch the diner for you if you want", she offers.

"Thanks Lorelai, that'd be great"

She waves as I rush out of the diner to my truck.

* * *

I arrive to the local police station and storm inside.

"I'm here to pick up Jess Mariano, I'm Luke Danes, his guardian", I tell the lady at the desk.

"Right through that door on your left, he's with the deputy", she responds.

"Thanks"

I see Jess sitting on a couch and an angry deputy standing across from him. Jess sits up when he sees me.

"I'm here to pick up Jess"

"Mr. Danes, I'm Deputy Forbes. We found your nephew in the middle of a bar fight and after searching him, we also found fake ID", he informs me.

I glare at Jess and he avoids my eye. "Is he free to go?", I ask.

"We need you to sign some papers, but yes. He got lucky this time, the man didn't press any charges and since he hadn't ordered a drink yet, we didn't put this on his permanent record. Consider this a warning, Jess"

Jess rolls his eyes and stands up. I watch him try to cover up a limp. "Are you hurt?", I ask. "I'm fine, I just wanna go home", he replies, annoyed. I sign the papers and we begin to head home.

* * *

 **Jess's POV:**

I had never felt so much tension in one car ride. Luke had not said one thing since we had left the police station. When we walk into the almost empty diner, I see Lorelai sitting behind the counter, reading a magazine. Luke walks over to her, says something, they both smile and she walks out. Luke watches her walk out then turns to me.

"Sit down", he orders, sternly. I do as I'm told and prepare myself for the storm that's about to come. "A bar fight. You got into a bar fight", he keeps repeating, his voice getting louder every time he says it. I unsurely nod, not sure how to respond. "You snuck out, went to a bar, not to mention you're underage, got into a fist fight with some alcoholic, and then got arrested", he continues, still not at the point of yelling. I sit there, staring at the floor. I watch a furious Luke pace around the diner then smack a napkin dispenser off a table, out of anger. Napkins fly everywhere and I get up to clean up the mess but he orders me to sit down. I sit back down and watch Luke as his face gets redder and redder, I didn't think he would get this angry. I feel ashamed, I messed up, again.

"I screwed up", I say quietly. He looks me in the eye for the first time tonight. Luke walks over to me and I look up at him. He suddenly swats my arm and I can tell even he is surprised by the amount of pressure he put in the swat. I don't say anything, I deserved it. Unfortunately for me, it was the arm that was beginning to recover. Sharp pangs of pain rush up my arm and I can feel tears form in my eyes. But, I don't say anything. Luke opens his mouth with an apologetic look and I can tell he's about to say he's sorry. I get up before he has a chance to say anything.

"I'm sorry, Luke", I mumble. I quickly go upstairs before he can stop me. I've disappointed the man who's never given up on me. I deserve whatever I get.


	8. Chapter 8

_-some bad language- -POV changes frequently-_

 **Luke's POV:**

Last night was bad. Last night was awful. I was awful. I got angry at Jess and I did something I've never done before. I hit him. I didn't mean to, it just came out. I'll never forget the look on his face. I love the kid so much, I was just so angry that he put himself in danger like that, getting into a bar fight and then getting arrested.

I look over to him sleeping peacefully, he looks so vulnerable. I walk over to him and gently shake him. His eyes open slowly then he sits up. "Hey, Jess, I think we need to talk about last night", I tell him calmly. "I said I was sorry", he says.

"I know you did, but I didn't get a chance to apologize. I'm sorry I lost my temper for a second, it won't happen again". He looks up at me confused.

"Luke, if you're referring to the little swat on the hand you gave me, it's fine. I swear I'm okay", he assures me.

I breathe a sigh of relief. "What do you want for breakfast? Anything you want, pancakes, waffles, omelette", I offer. "Not hungry", he mumbles. I sigh. I watch him sit on his bed and stare at the ceiling, he always looks like he has something else on his mind.

"I have to take a shower, so I might be late coming downstairs, is that okay?", he asks quietly. I look at him surprised. Jess never asks if it's okay if he's late, he shows up whenever he wants anyway.

"Yeah, take your time, I'll be downstairs if you, uh, need anything", I tell him, still confused.

* * *

 **Jess's POV:**

I know Luke is feeling guilty about last night, but he really doesn't have to. He barely touched me, the only reason it hurt was because it was still recovering from when that asshole, Frank, twisted my arm and pushed me down. I limp over to the bathroom and start the shower. This is my first shower coming back from New York. I take off my shirt and stare at the bruises all over my body, in the mirror. Dammit. I have a bunch all over my arm and shoulder, and some on my back. My leg is also a little swollen. I just can't let Luke see these, first of all, he'll freak out and take me to the hospital. Then second of all, he'll think he was the one who caused them.

I shower until the water gets cold. I wrap a towel around my legs and as I'm about to exit the bathroom I hear the apartment door open then close and Luke calling my name. "I'm in the bathroom", I yell back, hoping he leaves. "Just wanted to make sure you weren't dead", he calls back, chuckling. I can't go out like this, he'll see all the bruises. "I'll be ready in five minutes", I say through the closed door. "I can wait, there's no one downstairs, take your time", he says. Dammit, why does he have to be so nice all the time? I open all the bathroom closets, looking for something to cover myself with, one towel isn't going to do it. Finally I find a white robe, then throw it on. It only takes half a second for Luke to begin laughing. "Why are you wearing a robe?", he asks in between his loud laughs.

"I'm self conscious about my weight", I say sarcastically, rolling my eyes. "The sight of you in a robe is funnier than Taylor Doose in biking shorts, you look ridiculous take it off", he says.

"It's _your_ robe", I point out. "I don't own a robe, that's probably Lorelai's from when she slept...", he begins but stops himself. I raise my eyebrows. "I always thought you and Rory looked alike, like father, like daughter", I joke, grinning."I'm glad to see you're returning to your usual, annoying, self. Just get dressed and throw that damned thing out", he tells me, finally leaving.

* * *

 **Luke's POV:**

The diner breakfast rush had begun and Jess had finally come downstairs. "I need you working the counter", I say to him. "You got it, Mr. Gilmore", he grins.

"Would you stop with that ridiculous joke?"

He makes his way behind the counter, laughing, and takes out a book. Lorelei and Rory come in and sit at the counter. I quickly go behind the counter and stand next to Jess, making sure he doesn't continue with that whole 'Rory's father' joke.

"Hey Luke, Jess, long time, no coffee. Three cups of the good stuff, please", Lorelai exclaims, in her usual perky voice. I pour them coffee and Jess goes back to reading his book. I watch him stand uncomfortably in one spot and flinch whenever someone made physical contact, even a simple pat on the back caused him to wince.

"You feeling okay?", I ask, trying to sound casual.

"Just dandy", he replies in his usual sarcastic tone.

"Jess, I'm being serious, you tell me if you're not feeling good"

He looks away and doesn't say anything, but gives a slight nod."I'm gonna go clear that table", he says quietly, obviously to avoid continuing the conversation. As he's walking to the table, he bumps into one of my waiters, holding two cups of hot coffee. The coffee spills on Jess and he yells "Sh*t!" in pain. I rush over to him but he pulls away from me and rushes upstairs, I follow.

"Are you okay?", I ask, once we get into the apartment.

"What do you mean 'are you okay' "? Some douche just spilled 300 f*cking degree coffee all over me!", he yells, storming into the bathroom.

"You're gonna be fine, just pour some cold water on the burn"

I turn the doorknob to go into the bathroom when I hear him rushing to lock it. He blocks the door with his body, preventing me from entering. "What the hell is wrong with you? Let me in", I demand. "No, no!", he shouts before I push him aside and storm into the bathroom. The first thing I see is Jess's terrified face, the second thing I see are a million bruises and scars all over his body. I'm in shock and suddenly mute. "Oh, Jess", are the only words that I can get out. "It's not as bad as it looks, Luke, I swear", he tries. I want to ask what happened but the words just don't come out. I reach out my hand to touch one of his bruises and he winces in pain. "Get in the car, now", I order, once I can finally talk in complete sentences again. He begins to protest but stops himself when he sees the look on my face. I'm horrified, I can only imagine how Jess must be feeling.

* * *

 **Jess's POV:**

The car ride to the hospital felt like an hour, for it being only 20 minutes away. I explained to Luke everything, starting with Frank and ending with the coffee. He didn't say a word but the look of anger on his face said it all. I kept trying to tell him I was fine now but he just kept shaking his head, I've never seen Luke this upset before, this is 100x worse than his bar fight reaction. He honked the horn every time I mentioned Frank's name. "Jess?", he finally said, when I stopped talking. "Yeah?", I reply. "I'm sorry", he states. I look at him confused, why is he sorry? "It's my fault, I should've never sent you back to New York", Luke says. Neither of us say anything for a moment. "It's not your fault", I mumble, as he parks the car.

Luke and I sit in the waiting room for ten minutes after getting my bruises checked out and some X-rays taken.

"Mariano. Jess Mariano?", a nurse calls. Luke and I both stand up. "Dr. Judson wants to talk to Jess alone and then with both of you", the nurse tells Luke. I can tell Luke is upset but I give him a reassuring nod and he gives in and sits back down. I follow the nurse into a tiny office and she tells me that the doctor will be here soon and to take a seat.

After sitting down for almost five minutes, the doctor comes in. He's not too tall, not too short, but looks pretty buffed.

"You must be Jess", he says, smiling. I give a firm nod. "I took a look at your X-rays, son, and you're pretty lucky, no permanent damage", he tells me. "So can I leave?", I ask. "Not yet", he chuckles. I roll my eyes.

"Your shoulder and knee appear strained, so take it easy for a bit. I'm going to give you a sling for your shoulder, a brace for your knee, and I prescribed you with something that should help with the pain, and heal in the process", he begins. I make myself comfortable, realizing that at this rate, I'll probably be here for another hour. The doctor takes a long pause.

"You have multiple bruises all over your body, they must be killing you"

"I'm fine"

"Jess, I want you to know whatever you say in here is completely confidential"

I shrug and repeat that I'm fine.

"Do you recall how you got these bruises?", he asks, pen and paper in hand.

"Yeah, I fell down the stairs", I lie.

"Jess, you can tell me the truth, how's your home life?"

I scoff, "Excuse me? What does that have to do with anything?". I can see the doctor is starting to get impatient with me.

"Tell me about yourself, Jess. What do you like to do for fun?", he asks, obviously trying to make me feel comfortable with him. I cross my arms and roll my eyes.

"Why can't Luke be present while you ask me these questions?"

"We'll call him in soon. So, you're a good looking boy, you must have girls chasing after you. You must have a really pretty girlfriend", he says, trying way too hard to sound casual, as if he cares.

"Yep, I'm the shit, can I go now?", I say sarcastically, trying to end the conversation.

"Almost. You're a teenager, you need pocket money, do you have a job?", he asks, still trying to get information out of me.

I realize the sooner I answer these ridiculous questions, the sooner I can leave.

"Yeah, I bust tables at my uncle's diner"

"Ah, your uncle Luke. I see here he's in the process of becoming your legal guardian. How's your relationship with him?"

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize we were playing 20 questions. You can stick a needle up your ass and stop asking me these ridiculous questions. Do you think I'm an idiot? I know what you're trying to do, to answer the only question you actually want to know the answer for, no, Luke doesn't hit me!"

"Jess, please settle down. Everybody here just wants to make sure you're living in a comfortable and safe environment, we'll call Luke in, if it'll make you feel better"

I glare at the doctor. This is a waste of time. Thankfully, thirty seconds after the doctor sends a nurse to call Luke in, he appears anxiously at the door.

"Hi, Mr. Danes, please take a seat and allow me to review some of this information with you", Dr. Judson says to Luke. Luke rubs my back and sits down on the chair next to the exam bed that I'm sitting on.

"Your nephew's pretty beaten up", Dr. Judson says.

"Is there any permeant damage? What can we do? Is he going to be okay?"

I can't help but smile to myself, nobody's ever cared about me as much as Luke.

"He's going to be okay. I have to ask, the stories just aren't matching up. He claims to have fallen down the stairs but the bruises don't correspond with that"

Luke looks at me as if he's asking permission to tell him the real story, I shake my head no. "Well, I can't think of anything else that would cause them", Luke says.

"Mr. Danes, I don't think you understand the seriousness of the situation. If I don't get some real answers soon, you'll be getting a call from Child Protection Services", he threatens.

Luke looks furious, he hates being threatened. "The seriousness of the situation? Let me tell you the seriousness of the situation! My nephew is in a great deal of pain right now, your job is to make the pain go away and tell me what I can do at home to help him. Why don't you do your job and focus on the real situation; Jess", Luke shouts.

"The safety of my patient is also my concern. He'll be needing a sling, a knee brace, and I prescribed some pills. If you'd much rather discuss this with an attorney in a courtroom, that's your decision", Dr. Judson concludes.

"I'll take my chances. Come on, Jess, I'll get you out of this hell hole", Luke says, grabbing the prescription out of the doctor's hand. He holds the door open for me and helps me walk. Luke guides me to the car and tells me to wait while he goes back inside to the hospital's pharmacy and gets my prescription. I take out my book and begin to read; the only thing that calms me down.

* * *

 **Luke's POV:**

As I pay for Jess's medicine, sling, and knee brace, I review what just happened in the doctor's office. I never really raise my voice unless I'm really pissed off. That doctor really pissed me off. Jess wants to protect his damned mother so I didn't say anything about Jess's visit to New York City. Protecting his mother comes with protecting that douche bag, Frank.

I walk back to the car and spot Jess reading his book. He looks up only when I close the car door after I sat down. "We're ready to go", I clarify. For the most part, the drive home was pretty quiet, Jess read the whole way.

"Hey, Jess.", I say quietly, once I park the car. He looks up. "We're home", I tell him. He looks around, realizing we're outside of the diner, then unbuckles his seat belt. I watch him carefully attempt to step out of the car.

"Relax, I got you", I assure him as he puts his hand on my shoulder to balance his body. We walk into a relatively empty diner; only two customers are sitting at the counter. I direct Jess to an empty chair at a table, near the counter so I can keep an eye on him.

"I have to go check on Cesar, I promise it'll be quick then I'll take you upstairs so we can get your knee brace on and everything", I tell him.

"Whatever", he mumbles, taking out his book. I quickly run my fingers through his hair, which causes him to glance up at me irritably.

I walk into the kitchen. "Everything okay in here?", I ask Cesar.

"Everything's fine, Luke. How's Jess?", he asks. I smile to show my appreciation for his concern for Jess, knowing that he was never really fond of my nephew.

"He's going to be okay, but he's pretty beaten up"

"Poor kid. I got everything under control here, you go take care of Jess, and send him my best"

"Will do. Thanks, Cesar"

I walk back to find Jess in the same position that I left him. I help him up and guide him upstairs. He settles down on the couch without saying another word.

"Cesar sends his best", I comment, as I take out the sling, brace, and pills out of the bag. Jess scoffs. "Yeah, he's a great guy when he's not on my back about everything that needs to be done in the diner", he replies, sarcastically.

"Okay, you need to take two of these per day, morning and night", I read the prescription. Jess groans. I set a pill down on the table with a glass of water. He stares at me and I stare back. When I realize this isn't getting anywhere, I take a seat next to him and he shifts over.

"Don't you have to get back downstairs?", he asks.

"Cesar's got everything under control, I'm taking the day off to take care of you"

"Not necessary"

I sigh. "Jess, please take the pill, then I'll get off your back, okay?", I plead.

He glares at me, but eventually gulps down the pill and takes a sip of water.

I help him get the knee brace on. Then, he slides his arm into the sling. He looks so vulnerable.

"Luke?", he says quietly.

"Yeah?"

"You don't think the doctor was serious about the whole courtroom and child protection services thing, do you?", he asks. I put my hand on his shoulder to comfort him. For once, he doesn't pull away. "Don't worry about it, I'll handle it", I promised. He seems to relax a bit after that.

"Why don't we turn on the tv, it's so quiet", I suggest.

"Thought I was on punishment for the whole bar situation", he smirks, returning to his usual self.

I smile at the sight of him smiling, even if is smile was out of sarcasm. "Then you should take my token of generosity without any question", I reply.

With that, he takes the remote out of my hand and turns on the tv. Once he picks out a channel, he turns the volume up, then takes out his book again. He begins to read and doesn't even look up at the tv. He really is something.


	9. Chapter 9

_Hey guys! I hope you're enjoying this so far, I know I really enjoy writing it! Please leave me more reviews, it really motivates me to write! You guys are the best, thank you for the positive feedback! Enjoy the story! :)_

 **Jess's POV:**

It's been a week since I went to the doctor's office and he gave me a prescription. For the most part, the pain has gone away and most of my bruises were beginning to fade. Luke has been extremely over-protective of me; I've basically been ordered to be on bedrest for a week. He only allows supervised stretching for half an hour at a time so I don't strain myself. He set up a spot for me downstairs in the diner, since spring break ended a few days ago but I wasn't really able to move so I stayed home from school. Rory would come everyday after her school for two hours and tutor me so I wouldn't fall behind. It's now Friday afternoon and the last day I have to wear my sling and brace, but I still have another week of taking pills.

I walk around the apartment I've been restrained to. Even if I wasn't injured I would still be grounded but the only difference is, Luke's letting me take off from the diner.

As if on cue with the thought of him, Luke comes into the apartment. "Hey, how's my handicapped nephew doing?", he asks as he walks through the door.

"I'll be great just as soon as I can get out of this damned apartment", I retort, scoffing.

"Lucky for you, your 'take it easy' period is over tomorrow, I'll see you 8 am sharp downstairs", he reminds me.

"Come on! It's my first day back from an injury and you're making me bust tables and converse with people?", I argue.

"Don't give me that. You'd still be grounded anyway"

I roll my eyes and return to my usual spot on the couch. I can see Luke is starting to feel sorry for me. Underneath his whole tough guy act, he's a total pushover.

He sighs. "Jess, why don't you go out for a walk, get some fresh air?", he suggests hesitantly.

"If you insist", I say, smirking.

"Be careful, remember, take it easy. And if you start to get tired and don't think you can walk back, just give me a call. You have 20 minutes, not a second more", he asserts.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I got it"

"I mean it, Jess. Twenty minutes. It's 4:23 right now, if you as so much come through that door at 4:44, you'll have another week of sitting in stuffy apartment on a friday night"

"Alright, I got it", I repeat, annoyed. I rush out the door before he has a chance to change his mind. Freedom!

* * *

 **Luke's POV:**

As much as I would love for Jess to just stay inside the apartment for the rest of his life so he would never be in danger, I know I can't do that. I let the kid go out for a bit and get some fresh air, he's been pretty cooperative lately. Besides, I really needed to make a phone call that I would prefer Jess not be present for.

This morning, I got a package in the mail from Liz. I expected it to be the paperwork she had agreed to sign and send over, but to my dismay, it was the complete opposite. Under a court of law, Jess's residence is with me, but he's still under the custody of Liz. We basically have a shared custody, except I'm the one that he lives with full time and she's the one who just gets the title of being his mother. I got a letter from someone who is apparently her attorney and she's demanding to regain the right for Jess to live with her. She's got some nerve, after sending Jess back like that, without so much as an apology; disgusting.

I dial her number and after two rings her high voice says 'hello' over the phone.

"Liz, this is Luke. Are you sober enough to understand what I'm about to say, cause it's pretty important", I begin, furiously.

"Luke... I take it you got the package from my lawyer", she says, her voice beginning to break up.

"Good guess, and let me tell you right off the bat, it's not going to happen"

"Luke, I really appreciate what you've done for Jess, but you did your part and he's my son and I want to see him", she babbles.

"The day I allow you to come near Jess is the day I'll sing campfire songs with Taylor Doose. Do you have no shame? After the way he was treated during when he visited? Over my dead body", I'm now yelling over the phone. I can feel my face getting red with pure anger.

"How was he treated in New York? We welcomed him with open arms. What about the way you treat him? I got a call from a hospital saying that my son was checked in and apparently had numerous injuries, you really expect me to believe he fell down the stairs?", she shrieks.

"Why don't you ask your drug addict of a boyfriend what really happened to Jess, don't you ever accuse me of laying a hand on the kid again, you understand me, Liz? You and your loser of a boyfriend will never even get the chance to make physical contact with Jess again! Never again! I'll see you in court", I conclude, slamming the phone down on the base, hanging it up.

* * *

 **Jess's POV:**

"27 seconds past 4:43, go ahead lock me up", I joke, as I walk into the apartment. When I don't get a response back from Luke, I look up to find him furiously writing on a piece of paper.

"Sudden need to work on your calligraphy?", I ask sarcastically. He looks up at me, and automatically I can tell something's wrong.

"Jess, not now, please just go read a book or something", Luke pleads.

"What's wrong?", I ask.

"Dammit, Jess, nothing! I just have some important stuff to do", he snaps. Usually I would continue to bug him until he told me what was up, but the look on his face meant it was probably really important. Even I know when enough's enough.

"Sorry", I mutter, taking a soda from the fridge.

I take a seat on the couch and begin to read my book. But, I just can't stop thinking about Luke, why won't he tell me what's going on? My cell phone starts to ring and I realize I must've accidentally turned it on. When I'm grounded or on some sort of punishment, I get phone privileges taken away, but Luke trusts me enough to let me keep it just not use it. He suddenly looks up from his vigorous writing.

"What's that noise?", he asks, sternly.

"It's my phone, I guess I forgot to turn it off", I say, casually, not realizing how angry Luke was.

"Well, hand it over, you know the deal", he demands.

"I wasn't even on it, it's just Shane, it's not like I answered it or anything", I argue.

"I don't care. That's distracting to me. Give me your phone, Jess"

"Why are you in such a bad mood? Jeez, you really need to get laid"

"That's it! You just added two more weeks to your grounding, now give me your phone before I make it three", he yells.

I'm stunned. Luke's never freaked out on me for something so little. He's usually pretty calm. I hand over my cell phone without saying another word.

He returns to whatever he was doing and I just sit there quietly staring at him. He looks so focused. It almost looks like he's angry at the paper he's writing on.

Luke writes nonstop for the whole night. The only words he said to me for the rest of the night were "get to bed" at exactly 11:33. I was about to argue and say that he never said anything about an earlier curfew because of the whole incident, but realized that it was no use arguing with him when he was in this bad of a mood. He can be pretty strict sometimes but I know that he only does it because he cares about me. I just wish that I knew what was up with him.

* * *

 **Luke's POV:**

My alarm clock beeps at 6:00 am, but it beeps from the other side of the room. I must've fallen asleep at the kitchen table finishing up some paperwork to send to Liz's attorney, the attorney that I just hired, and the courtroom. I groggily walk over to my side of the apartment where the alarm clock is, and turn it off. Thankfully, Jess sleeps like a dead person so I don't have to worry about it waking him up.

I replay yesterday's events in my head as I brush my teeth. Just thinking about the possibility of Jess being shipped back to New York to Liz and that asshole, Frank, makes me furious. I managed to calm myself down enough before I got downstairs. The mornings are pretty quiet, the breakfast rush usually starts at around 7. Cesar comes in at 6:30 and politely greets me.

"Rough morning?", he asks, probably noticing the dark circles around my eyes.

"You have no idea", I reply, pouring two cups of coffee for Cesar and I.

"Jess is starting again today, right?", he asks.

"Yeah, the doctor said he could get back to his usual routine within a week, the week was up yesterday", I explain.

"So at least you'll have the extra help", he notes.

I chuckle. "How much help does Jess actually provide?", I joke. We both laugh. Jess appears at the edge of the stairs, looking tired.

"Enough help that he wakes up at 7", Jess points out, talking about himself in third person.

"You're up early", I comment.

He shrugs. "Since the diner's empty, why don't I make you some breakfast?", I offer Jess. "Not hungry", he mumbles. Cesar walks into the kitchen, probably realizing that this how most of Jess's and mine's arguments start. Jess walks over behind the counter and takes out his book. I sigh. "Jess, I'm sorry that I freaked out on you last night, I was in a really bad mood, it had nothing to do with you", I explain. "I figured that much", he replies, not looking up. Before I can say anything else, the bell above the door chimes and a lady walks in and sits down. Reluctantly, Jess puts his book down and walks over to take her order.

"Egg white omelette with swiss", he calls to Cesar. "Do you want to talk about last night?", I ask when he goes back to reading his book. He mutters something under his breath that I'm rather glad I can't make out. "What do you think?", he answers, sarcastically.

"I think that I was pretty stressed and I took it out on you which wasn't fair"

He looks up and studies my face.

"Whatever, I'm used to it"

When he goes back to ignoring me, I put his phone on the counter. That really causes him to look up. "I trust you", I tell him. He unsurely puts the phone in his pocket.

Every time I try to talk to Jess another customer comes in and interrupts me. He ignores me the entire morning. I know he's still mad that I'm not telling him what's going on and he's a pretty smart kid, he knows something's up. I just don't want to worry him. I pull him aside while he's clearing a table.

"Hey!", he exclaimed as I pulled him into the kitchen. I tell Cesar that I need him outside taking orders and he gladly walks out of the kitchen, knowing that this is gonna be a classic 'Jess/Luke argument'.

"Sit", I order. He sits down on Cesar's stool without objection.

"Wanna tell me why you've been so moody this morning?", I ask.

"Me? Do you realize how crazy you sound? You freaked out on me cause my phone rang!", he argues.

"I told you, I was in a bad mood, I apologized. But, _you_ never talk about what's really on _your_ mind. I don't know what you're thinking, I'm not psychic, Jess. You have to tell me if something else is bothering you"

He shrugs and looks away, crossing his arms.

"You never tell me anything", he mumbles quietly.

"What?"

"Why won't you tell me why you were in a bad mood yesterday? Why won't you ever tell me what's going on?", he demands, getting up from the seat.

I sigh. "Jess, you have to understand...", I begin. He starts to walk out before I have a chance to say anything else.

"It's Liz.", I finally say. He stops in his tracks and turns around.

"What about her?", he asks, obviously trying to hide his concern.

"She, uh, is filing for full custody of you", I admit. Jess's face goes blank.

"Hey, look at me, it's not gonna happen. I'm handling it, don't worry", I try to reassure him. He gives a firm nod but doesn't say anything.

I see the worried look in his eyes. It's a look I've never seen from Jess. He never looks scared, nervous, or worried, but right now he looks like he's seen a ghost.

"Why don't you take a ten minute break?", I suggest. He nods and walks outside without saying another word.

* * *

 **Jess's POV:**

This is so unbelievable. Why is Liz allowed to just demand for me to drop everything and go where ever she wants me to, when ever she wants me to? It's not fair. I sit down on a bench a few feet away from the diner. I observe my surroundings for a few minutes until my thoughts were interrupted by a shrilly, too happy, voice that could only be identified as Lorelai Gilmore's. I look up to see Lorelai and Rory walking towards me.

"Luke letting you out on bail?", Lorelai joked.

"Something like that", I reply.

"How are you feeling?", Rory asks. I shrug.

"I'm alive, aren't I?", I answer, sarcastically. Lorelai and Rory look at each other. "I'm gonna go inside, I'll order you some coffee", she says to Rory. Rory says okay then takes a seat next to me.

"No book today?", she asks. I shake my head no. "Not really in the reading mood", I tell her. She gasps over-dramatically.

"Jess Mariano not in the reading mood? I'll alert the media", she smiles, which causes me to smile.

"Just been going through some stuff", I say casually.

"What kind of stuff?"

"Stuff."

"Interesting."

"It really is."

"Have you talked to Luke about your 'stuff'?", she asks, putting air quotes around 'stuff'.

"It's out of his hands"

"If there's one thing I know about Luke, it's that nothing is ever out of his hands", she tells me. I think about that. I know Luke will fight for me because he cares about me. I just can't imagine what would happen if he loses.

"We should get inside", I say, getting up and holding the door open for Rory. She thanks me and I follow her inside. I see Luke and Lorelai talking to each other at the counter and automatically stop when they see me. Luke immediately comes out from behind the counter and puts his hand on my shoulder, and quietly asks me if I'm okay.

"I'm fine", I tell him, and I really mean it. Knowing Luke, he won't give up until he gets what he wants, I trust him. I follow Luke behind the counter.

"I need a refill", Lorelai exclaims, holding up her coffee cup. Luke rolls his eyes. "Don't pour her a single drop of that stuff, she's had four cups this morning", he says to me. "Come on, Jess, have a heart", she pouts. I roll my eyes.

"So, Lorelai and I were talking, and she invited us to dinner. Do you have any plans tonight, Jess?", Luke says to me.

"You know I don't have plans, considering you're the one that grounded me", I reply.

"Perfect, we'll be there", he says to Lorelai. She smiles in response.

"I have to get back to the inn, we'll see you later tonight", she says, putting a ten dollar bill on the table. After she and Rory leave I look back to Luke who's smiling to himself.

"You so have a thing for her", I comment.

"Stop it", he warns.

"You like her and you know it", I continue.

"Can we talk about something else please?", he pleads, handing me a cloth.

"I can totally ditch the dinner tonight with Rory, and you guys can have some alone time", I reply, ignoring his requests. He laughs lightly.

"Can we be serious for a second?", he asks.

"I have a feeling my answer's not gonna matter", I say, wiping the counter, not looking up.

"You know you don't have to hide your feelings, right? You can talk to me about how you feel about the whole situation with Liz and everything".

"I told you, I'm fine", I say quietly.

"You have a tendency to say that a lot, even when you're not"

"I'm just not in the mood to talk, okay?"

"That's fine, Jess. Just please, talk to me eventually, I care about you"

I nod, trying to avoid getting into a conversation.

* * *

 **Luke's POV:**

Jess and I are closing up the diner a little early today so we have time to get ready for Lorelai's dinner. I watch him mop the floor with his earbuds in. He doesn't hear the bell above the door chime. I'm about to tell whoever came through the door that we're about to close, but I see that it's Shane.

"Hi Shane, we were actually about to close up", I tell the young girl.

"I'll be quick", she says, walking over to Jess.

She walks up behind him and taps his shoulder. He takes out his earbuds and turns around.

"Hey babe, I called you, you didn't answer", she gawked.

"I told you I'm grounded", he replies, not showing any interest in the girl's presence. I try to make myself look busy so Jess doesn't notice me eavesdropping.

"You're always grounded, stop being such a bad ass, even though it's so sexy", she gushes, pulling closer to Jess. I clear my throat to remind them that I'm still here.

"I'm busy right now Shane, I'll call you when I can", he states.

"God, so serious all the time. Does this have anything to do with your mommy drama? You really have to get over that", she remarks. I can see this really provokes Jess. He throws the mop on the floor and turns around completely to face Shane.

"Jess, we really should get going", I interject, noticing the tension. Shane just smirks at me, obviously finding Jess getting angry, amusing. She runs her fingers through his hair and he pulls away.

"We're done", he states. She just laughs.

"Don't be such a stickler", she giggles.

"I'm serious, get out, I don't want to see you again", he concludes. This causes her to stop smiling.

"You're not serious", she tries.

"Get out, I'm serious", he repeats.

"Fine, I don't care! I can have any guy I want. Hope I never see your lame ass again", she wailed.

Jess just rolls his eyes and watches her storm out of the diner.

"You okay?", I ask.

"Never been better", he replies. I can't quite tell if that's sarcasm or if he's being serious.

"Let's head upstairs and get ready for dinner"

"You don't think she actually cooked, do you?", Jess asks.

"Lorelai? Cooking? Not unless she wants to burn her house down. Maybe I should bring her flowers or cook something, to you know, thank her for having us"

"I think you should shower", he sniffs.

"What? Why? I showered this morning"

"Cause you reek of desperation", he laughs.

"Ha. Ha. Ha. Very funny, Jess. Just go get ready"

He slides past me, through the curtain, and up the stairs to our apartment. I follow him. This is going to be an interesting night.


	10. Chapter 10

**Luke's POV:**

"Jess, you've been in there for half an hour, we're going to be late", I barked, through the closed bathroom door. Finally the door swings open and he comes out with his perfectly gelled, dark hair.

"This doesn't just happen, you know. Those of us who are fortunate enough to have hair that doesn't need to be covered with a baseball cap every single day, prefer to actually take time on how it looks", he remarks, pointing to his head.

I roll my eyes. I grab my keys and Jess follows me downstairs, out the door, and to the truck.

"Why did she even invite us over? it's not an occasion or anything.", he asks.

"Well, I told her about what's been going on recently and she wanted to take our mind off things", I explain, as I turn the key into the ignition, starting the car.

"So it's out of pity?", he mumbles.

"No, Jess. Believe it or not, some people enjoy other people's company", I reply.

"But, she felt bad for us, and felt obligated to do something", he continues.

"No, it's not... she's not... would you stop asking so many questions?", I argued. I see him smirk, obviously pleased with himself that he got me riled up.

When we pull up in front of the Gilmore house, Jess begins to open the car door but I stop him.

"What now?", he grumbles, rolling his eyes.

"You will be polite, you will be courteous, you will not roll your eyes. Understood?", I demand.

"If I say yes will you promise not to include me into a never-ending conversation with Lorelai?", he says.

"Deal", I agreed.

"Then, yeah whatever", he mutters, then makes his way out of the car.

* * *

 **Jess's POV:**

After sitting down at the table for 20 minutes and listening to Luke and Lorelai argue about whether there should be a limit to how much coffee one can be served or not, the food was finally here.

Lorelei got up from the table to get the food from the delivery man, leaving me, Luke, and Rory.

"What, did you order for all of Connecticut?", Luke calls when he see Lorelai walk into the kitchen with five bags of food. He gets up and walks to the kitchen, leaving Rory and I.

"I'm surprised you're not hiding a book under there", Rory points out.

"Luke wouldn't let me", I state.

"Ah.", she comments.

Luke and Lorelai come in with trays of Chinese food. Once everyone sits down, Rory and Lorelai start to pour the food on their plates, Luke and I wait for them to finish attacking. Luke just takes an egg roll with a spoonful of white rice.

"Here, let me help you with that", Lorelai says to Luke, pouring him half of everything.

"You must've mistaken me for you", he says. I just take an egg roll with two dumplings.

"So Jess, you're going back to school on Monday. How do you feel?", Lorelai asks me. Until now, I've successfully been avoiding conversation. "Oozing with excitement", I reply sarcastically, not looking up from the egg roll I've been picking at. When I look up I see Luke giving me the 'warning eyes' to be polite. "It's about time he goes back, between spring break and the extra four days he took off, I've been seeing way too much of him", Luke jokes. "You would see a lot less of me if I wasn't grounded every week", I try. "You wouldn't be grounded every week if you stopped getting into trouble", he retorts.

"What'd you even do to get grounded? I can't keep up anymore", Lorelai says.

"Does the whole getting arrested thing ring a bell?", Luke reminds her. I chuckle and Luke shoots me a glance and I immediately wipe the smirk off my face.

Within minutes, Rory and Lorelai had already finished their seconds and Luke and I were still on our first servings. "You barely ate anything", Lorelai says. "Trust me, there was a bigger mountain of food on my plate 15 minutes ago", he replies. Lorelei gets up and starts gathering the dishes and Luke helps her.

"So, how's it going with your 'stuff'?", Rory asks, once again, putting air quotes around 'stuff'.

"It's going", I answer.

"Could you be any more vague?"

"I could"

"You're impossible, Jess"

"So, I've been told"

Luke walks back with Lorelai and announces that it's time to call it a night.

"Thanks for having us over, Lorelai. _Jess_ and I really appreciate it", Luke says, putting emphasis on my name, motioning for me to thank her as well. I give her an affirmative nod.

"Wow! Did I just get the nod of approval from Jess Mariano?", she exclaims, pretending to be all excited.

"See? People aren't so bad, you got through the night", Rory adds.

"Good night, Lorelai. Good night, Rory", he says.

"Night", the girls say in unison.

Luke tries to hide his smile, walking back to the car.

"This counted as one of your mandatory family dinners, right?", I confirm, once we begin driving back.

"Yeah, I guess it did. And I have to say, your behavior wasn't too bad tonight, so thank you for that"

"Good enough to take off a week from my grounding?", I try, not expecting a yes. To my surprise, Luke didn't automatically shoot me down like he usually does.

"I think we can work with that", he reasons.

"Did I hear you correctly? Luke Danes actually compromising?", I joke.

"This doesn't mean you can slack off in the diner. I'm rewarding you, don't make me regret it", he warns.

"Yeah, whatever"

* * *

Luke shakes me for the fifth time that morning, telling me to get up. I've been awake for five minutes, I just hadn't gotten up yet.

"Jess, come on, it's time to get up"

"Just give me five more minutes", I whine, sounding like a kid.

"I've given you ten minutes, come on, I know you're tired"

Reluctantly I get up and sit upright on my bed. It's a start, at least. I watch Luke button up his flannel then put on his baseball cap. "Jess...", he says in a warning tone when he notices I hadn't gotten up yet. "Alright, I'm up", I say, slowly standing up and stretching.

"Most teenagers get to sleep in on Sunday mornings", I mutter loud enough for Luke to hear.

"Good for them, looks like you're not one of them", he sarcastically replies.

After getting ready, Luke and I walk downstairs to the diner. Cesar had already opened it, so there were a few people already seated.

"Do me a favor and go get the mail", Luke says to me, pointing to Kirk, approaching our mailbox.

When Kirk notices me behind him, he jumps. I had a confrontation with him the last time he was delivering the mail, he was taking too long, and I wasn't in a very good mood.

"I can just take those", I say, motioning to the letters that were addressed to 'Lucas Danes'.

"By law, I'm required to put these in your mailbox"

"By law, I'm required to not punch someone in the face but that hasn't stopped me before."

"I'm just going to put these in the mailbox, you're making me nervous"

"Kirk! Just give me the damned mail!"

"I'm going to need identification that you're Lucas Danes, I can't just hand you someone else's mail"

"Identification? You see me everyday, I'm his nephew!", my voice is beginning to get louder.

"Yelling won't make me go quicker"

He slowly puts the letters in the mailbox, one by one. I cross my arms, waiting. He looks at me as he closes the mailbox, then speed walks away when I take a step closer to the mailbox.

I snatch the the papers out of the mailbox then walk back into the diner.

"It took you long enough", Luke noted.

"Tell that to Kirk", I say, putting the pile of letters on the counter. I watch Luke go through the mail and put aside two letters.

"Are those from Liz?", I ask, trying not to show interest.

"One's from her attorney and... one's from a judge", he answers hesitantly. At least he told me the truth.

"A judge?", I repeat.

Luke sighs. "That doctor wasn't kidding when he said that I would have to discuss it in court", he responds.

"You've gotta be kidding", I insisted, throwing my hands up in frustration.

"Unfortunately, I'm not. Liz just had to make the situation worse than it already was, didn't she?", he tells me.

I uncomfortably look down at my shoes, that had just became a habit everytime Liz's name was mentioned. Luke notices this and gives me an apologetic look.

"Jess, I know this is a lot that's being thrown on you right now, but don't worry about it, I'm handling it", he assures me. The court can't honestly believe that Luke abuses me. It's ridiculous. And Liz is obviously taking advantage of the situation which makes me even more angry.

Luke reads through the letters and I continue to watch him, attempting to read them upside down from my point of view.

"Refill coffees and take orders", Luke tells me, when he notices me trying to read the letters. I roll my eyes, he's trying to spare my feelings again by not letting me read the letters.

Coffee mug in hand, I go around and refill cups, take orders, and avoid anyone who tries to talk. Even if it's just a short 'how are you'.

As if I didn't want to be there enough, lo and behold, Shane walks in with some guy that I've never seen before. She smirks when she notices me looking at her then makes her way to the counter. I walk over to Luke who's still rereading the letter from the judge.

"I'm not taking her order", I tell him.

"Jess, I'm busy"

"I'm not taking her order", I repeat.

He finally looks up and sees who I'm talking about.

"Weren't you the one who broke up with her?"

"Yeah, so?"

"So, why do you care that she's here with another guy?"

"I don't care, I just don't want to hear her annoying voice", I scoff.

"Little busy right now", he motions to the letters.

"Fine", I grunt and walk back.

"Hey Jess, we're ready to order", Shane calls, giggling uncontrollably.

"That's great", I reply, wiping the counter.

"Have you met Shawn? He's my boyfriend", she declares, ignoring the fact that I'm not paying attention to her.

I finally walk over to the side of the counter where they're sitting.

"My condolences", I say to the guy.

He raises his eyebrows in confusion. "I'll just have oatmeal and coffee", he says.

"This is a diner, we don't serve oatmeal"

"It's on the menu"

"Then, we're out"

"Then just coffee", he decides.

"Same here, just coffee", Shane adds.

"I'll try my best not to spit in it", I mutter, getting two cups of coffee.

I walk back with the two cups.

"Actually Jess, I changed my mind, I want orange juice", Shane smirks. I put one cup of coffee down in front of Shawn.

"You said you wanted coffee"

"Now I'm saying I want orange juice"

I'm not gonna let her get to me. I give in and walk back into the kitchen and pour her a cup of orange juice. When I walk back she smiles at me as I put the cup of orange juice in front of her.

"Actually that coffee smells really good, can I have that cup of coffee back?", she asks, snickering.

"You can have the rest of mine", Shawn offers.

"No, it's okay baby, Jess can just fetch me my own cup", she smirks. I feel the anger build up inside of me. I'm not in the mood for this.

"Sure, Shane. Let me just get rid of the orange juice", I tell her, picking the cup back up. Without giving it a second thought, I spill the cup over her and she shrieks.

"My bad, must've slipped", I state. Everyone turns around to look at the girl now drenched in orange juice.

"What's your problem?", Shawn yells, getting up.

"Don't fucking piss me off", I spat.

"My hair!", Shane screams. Luke rushes to see what all the screaming's about.

"The hell's going on over here?!", he demands.

"Your employee just threw juice on my girlfriend!", Shawn raged.

Luke turns to me, "Jess?".

"It was an accident", I innocently responded.

"It was not! You poured it over my head!", she shrills.

"Jess, apologize", Luke orders.

"No!", I immediately yell. Shane and her new boyfriend stand there with their arms crossed.

"Jess, I'm being serious, apologize!", he repeats.

"No way in hell I'm apologizing to her", I state.

"Do you wanna go outside, man?", Shawn demands.

"You wanna fight me? I can take you out with one punch", I threaten, leaning over the counter.

Luke holds me back. "That's enough!", he yells.

Everyone is now staring, the diner is completely silent.

"Upstairs, now!", he orders me.

I throw the washcloth I'm holding, on the counter in front of Shawn and he squirms. I storm upstairs. I can't believe Luke's taking Shane's side.

I sit on the couch and wait for Luke to come in and start yelling at me. Ninety three seconds later, he's upstairs, storming through the door.

"What were you thinking?", he demands, yelling.

"I was thinking she would melt", I joke.

"You think this is funny? You caused a scene in my diner, you through orange juice on a girl's head, refused to apologize, and now you're laughing?", Luke yells.

"It's not a big deal", I tell him.

"Your attitude is a big deal, it won't be tolerated, Jess"

"Why are you taking her side? She was being such a bitch!"

"As if I don't have enough things to worry about, you getting into fist fights with customers and throwing stuff at them should not be on the list!"

"I didn't punch him, and trust me, I really wanted to"

"Well that just makes everything better", he says sarcastically, pacing around the apartment.

"Admit that you found it a little funny"

"What?"

"Come on! Seeing her drenched in orange juice, her brown hair roots showing, screaming; that was pretty funny"

I can see Luke trying to hold back a chuckle.

"I didn't find it funny"

"You're such a bad liar"

"It wasn't funny"

"You laughed"

"That wasn't a laugh, that was half a chuckle"

"If that's what you wanna believe"

"Listen, I know these past few days haven't been easy for you. But you can't go around throwing stuff on people, understand?"

I don't say anything.

"Jess, do you understand?"

"Yeah, whatever"

"No, I wanna hear a 'yes'."

"Yes, I understand", I say, rolling my eyes.

"Good. Now go clean up the mess downstairs. I'm letting you off with a warning this time cause I know you haven't been going through an easy time. This was a one time thing"

I nod, not believing I got off with a warning.

"Hey Luke?", I say on my way back downstairs.

"Yeah?"

"I'm not sorry that I poured it on her, but I'm sorry that I made a scene, you didn't deserve that", I say quietly, I'm not one for apologies and Luke knows that. He looks at me astonished.

"Thank you, I appreciate that", he replies. I nod and continue to walk downstairs.

* * *

 **Narrator's POV:**

The day had a crazy start but thankfully settled down leading up to the evening. It's about 7 pm and the diner is empty. On sundays the diner closes at 8:30 so Jess and Luke were beginning to get ready for closing while making fun of Taylor who stopped by earlier asking about the whole 'orange juice fiasco'.

"I swear, the people in this town have no lives, some girl gets orange juice in her hair and it's suddenly the talk of the town", Jess protests. Luke can't help but chuckle at his attitude.

"It's not everyday someone gets orange juice thrown at them", Luke points out. Jess smirks and says, "Damn that felt good, I would so do that again". Luke shoots him a warning look. "But I won't", he quickly assures him, throwing up his hands in surrender.

The bell above the door chimes and a man in a suit comes in. Jess groans loudly, realizing he has to get back to work.

"Sit at any table you want", Jess tells the man who's just looking around the diner.

"I'm looking for a Jess Mariano", the man states. Luke walks up beside Jess before he has a chance to say anything else. "I'm Jess's guardian, what's this about?", he asks.

"Is Jess Mariano here?"

"His guardian is", Luke answers, stepping in front of Jess. The man flips through some papers he's holding. "Lucas Danes?", he confirms. "Yes, I'm Luke Danes", he replies. "These papers are for Jess Mariano, they state his obligation to be present at a court meeting regarding the custody battle between his mother and uncle, he will have the option to be called up for questioning", the man explains, handing me the papers.

"Thank you", he says, the man nods and walks out of the diner. Jess immediately turns to Luke once the man leaves. "Why didn't you let me talk?", he asks. "Because it wasn't necessary, you're a minor", Luke answers. "I can handle taking papers from someone, I'm not a kid", he argues.

"Cool it, Mr. Ego"

"Can I at least have the papers? They're mine"

"I'll look through them first"

"Is that even legal? They're addressed to Jess Mariano! I'm Jess Mariano!"

"Good, thanks for reminding me, Jess Mariano has to take out the trash"

Jess mutters something under his breath, rolling his eyes.

"And if we don't have enough trash bins throw them in Taylor's", he calls as Jess slams the diner door behind him. Luke reads through the papers. He thinks to himself how this is getting more and more ridiculous every day. Now she's making the poor kid sign these papers and show up to a courtroom? She really has no shame. He stacks the papers back in order when Jess walks in.

"For once you had enough bins", Jess says, coming back into the diner.

"I looked through the papers, the court date is in two weeks. Take a glance at them and sign where it needs to be signed", Luke tells him, handing him the papers. He nods, taking the papers, and sitting down at the counter. Luke watches him carefully read through the papers with complete concentration. "Are you gonna stare at me the whole time?", he asks, not looking up. Before Luke can say anything else, the bell rings again. "We're closing soon, you might as well leave now", Jess states, not looking up. The girl says 'excuse me?' and Jess looks up annoyed. He doesn't like being interrupted when he's reading something important. The annoyed glare on his face goes away when he sees the girl who just came in through the door. He's never seen her before. He thinks she's gorgeous.

"You focus on that, I'll take the order", Luke says to Jess. But Jess gets up before Luke can even get his note pad. Luke notices Jess blush when the girl smiles at him, he can't help but laugh at the sight of his nephew blushing; he never blushes. Jess glares at him and Luke just smirks.

"Hi", Jess greets.

"Hi", the girl replies cheerfully. Jess just stares at her for a few seconds, at a loss of words; he's never found anyone so beautiful before. The girl couldn't be above the age of 16 and she was obviously new in town.

"I'm ready to order", she says, snapping Jess back into reality.

"Oh, yeah, uh, what can I get you?", the young boy says, feeling embarrassed. Luke stares at the color of Jess's cheeks become a brighter and brighter shade of red.

"Just a coffee and croissant, please", the girl says, smiling. Jess nods and walks back to the counter giving Luke a look to not say a word. The smirk on Luke's face said it all.

"Shut up", Jess says, pouring a cup of coffee.

"I didn't say anything", Luke replies innocently.

"Shut up", he repeats then walks back to the table with the coffee in hand.

"I put the croissant in the toaster, it'll be out in a minute", he says. The girl smiles and thanks him, once again Jess nods. Luke sees his nephew wanting to say something else but not finding the words for it. He walks up to the table where the girl is sitting and immediately Jess shoots him a 'don't embarrass me' look.

"We were actually just about to close up, would you mind moving over to the counter?", Luke says to the girl.

"No problem", the girl replies.

"Jess, grab her coffee", Luke says. Jess brings the coffee over to the counter and cracks half a smile to Luke, thanking him. Jess knew that if she sat at the counter he would have a better chance of getting into a conversation.

"So are you new here?", Jess asks, sounding casual.

"Yeah actually, I just moved here from New York City", the girl responds.

"Really? I moved here from New York City about a year ago, I'm Jess by the way"

"Lindsay, nice to meet you"

Luke smiles to himself as he watches Jess talking to the girl. He loves to see Jess happy and this is the happiest he's seen him in a while.

"Jess, lock up when you're done, I'm heading up", Luke says, allowing Jess to be alone with the girl.

"Okay", he calls back.

The toaster beeps and Jess takes the croissant out and gives it to Lindsay. "I should take this to go, it's getting late, first day of school tomorrow", she says apologetically. "Yeah I can wrap that up for you", Jess replies. "So maybe I'll see you around?", she asks. "Maybe", Jess answers, cracking his signature combination of a smirk and smile. Jess watches her leave and wave on her way out. There was something about her. She was different.


	11. Chapter 11

_**Hey guys, I hope you all had a great Christmas! I really hope you're enjoying the story so far.**_

 _ **Nancy: Thank you so much for your reviews and input, I love reading them so much! I enjoy hearing your thoughts and predictions, they're so interesting! :)**_

 _ **Julienmomo: Thank you for your constant reviews, I always look forward to reading them, I really appreciate the kind feedback :)**_

 **A lot of you have been writing reviews and I'm just so happy about that. If you ever have a question about the story, leave it in the reviews and I'll respond to you in my next chapter! Enjoy!**

 **Luke's POV:**

It's been almost a week since Jess received those papers from an attorney. He decided he wanted to be called up for questioning, so he signed the papers and we mailed them. The trial's in a week and I'm a nervous wreck. Jess on the other hand seems like he doesn't have a care in the world; he seems much happier. I suspect that something's going on but he of course doesn't talk to me about anything. He's been staying out of trouble, going to school, what more can I really ask for?

I'm talking to Lorelai in the diner wondering where Jess is, when he finally walks in 20 minutes late.

"Save the whole lateness speech, I'm here now", he states.

"Where were you? School ended 45 minutes ago, I was worried sick"

"I was out"

"Out where?"

"Just out"

"Jess, you can't just-"

"I'm sorry, it won't happen again, happy?", he interrupts, attempting to get out of a lecture.

"Just start clearing tables, we'll talk about this later"

"Whatever you say, Uncle Luke", he smirks, knowing how much I hate it when he calls me 'Uncle Luke'.

I turn back to Lorelai who's smiling ear to ear. "What are you so happy about?", I ask. "You are so blind", she replies, still smiling.

"You're happy that I'm blind?"

"Jess is obviously seeing someone"

"How would you know?"

"Didn't you hear it in his tone?"

"I heard obnoxiousness in his tone"

"He's seeing someone"

"You're delusional"

She smiles at me, "ask him". I roll my eyes. "Yeah, like he'll just straight out tell me", I say sarcastically. This time Lorelai rolls her eyes. "Hey, Jess!", she yells to across the diner. "What are you doing? You can't just ask him if he's dating someone!", I whisper to her, hoping Jess doesn't hear. Jess walks over. "What?", he asks. "Are you dating someone?", she asks, ignoring me. "Is this any of your business?", Jess replies. "No but I like to pry, now answer the question", she demands. "Yeah, I am", he answers. "Ha! Told you!", Lorelei gloats. "You're seeing someone? Who? When did this happen?", I ask. "Can I go now?", he asks, glaring at Lorelai and I, ignoring my questions.

"Just tell me who she is, come on, Jess"

"A girl", he answers, walking away.

"Does this girl have a name?", I ask, following him.

"Yep"

"Wanna tell me what it is?"

"Rather not"

My question is answered when a familiar girl comes up to Jess and I. Jess's face automatically lights up. It's the same girl from that night about a week ago. I should've seen that coming. She's been coming in here everyday, twice a day since then.

"Mind if I borrowed you for a second?", she asks Jess, smiling.

"You know I wouldn't mind, but you're gonna have to ask him", he answers, tilting his head towards me.

"Can I steal him away really quick?", she asks, turning to me.

"Five minutes", I agreed, hoping Jess would at least tell me her full name later that night.

"Yay!", she squeals, pulling Jess outside, and Jess looked pretty happy to be pulled.

I walk back to the counter and Lorelai is still still smiling. "What now?", I ask.

"They're making out"

"You're being ridiculous"

"They're definitely making out"

"You have a sick mind"

"I'll bet that they're right outside your door, making out, right this second"

"I'm not making a bet with you on whether or not my nephew is making out with someone"

She proceeds to make kissing noises.

"Lorelai!"

I'm about to repeat that Jess is not doing anything of that sort when Taylor walks in looking furious. "Luke! Two teenagers are outside of _your_ diner canoodling!", he rages.

"What do you want me to do about it, Taylor? What do I look like, a school principal?"

"You look like the guardian of one of them!", he exasperates. Lorelai once again repeats, "I told you" as I storm outside. Sure enough, Jess is outside with that girl and they're kissing.

"Try not to swallow her", I comment. Jess pulls out of the kiss and stares at Taylor, then at me. "Unbelievable! One kiss and we have the kissing police here already making reports", Jess rants, pointing to Taylor. "No one wants to see public displays of affection, young man, it's very inappropriate", Taylor says to Jess. "Can it, Taylor", Jess replies.

"Luke, what are you going to do about this?", Taylor asks, turning to me.

"I'm going to do what I should've done the second you came in. Get off my property, Taylor"

"You're telling me you're not going to do anything about this?"

"I'm telling you to get off my property, that's what I'm doing"

"I'm leaving, this is completely inappropriate", he huffs, then storms off.

I turn to Jess and his girlfriend. I sigh and finally say, "If you're going to do this outside my diner can I at least know your name?".

"Lindsay", she answers, smiling. Jess glares at me for asking and I simply smile to both of them.

"Well Lindsay, are you just going to stand outside my diner and kiss my nephew or are you going to order some food?"

"I really should be going, but it was so nice to meet you. Bye, Jess, think about what I asked you", she says, then walks away.

Jess walks inside before I have a chance to say anything. I laugh at the sight of him blushing, following him inside.

"Don't you have something better to do with your life than butt into what's going on in mine?"

I continue to laugh then mess up his hair.

"I'm going upstairs", he declares, annoyed.

I walk back to Lorelai, who couldn't look more smug. "I don't know how you do that, but it comes in handy", I comment. "15 years of experience", she replies.

"Did you see how red his face got? That was hilarious, I don't think I've ever seen Jess blush", I exclaim, laughing.

"I don't think I've ever seen you smile or laugh so much in one day. What happened to grumpy, 'love sucks' Luke?"

"Well, if this girl makes Jess happy, which she obviously does, then I'm happy"

"Aww, Luke has a soft spot"

"Stop it"

"That's so cute, now you're blushing!"

"That's it, you're officially being kicked out, you're banned for the day"

"Relax Mr. Grumpy Pants, I have to go pick Rory up from her student council meeting. I'll be back later, though, look forward to it!", she says.

I decide to go check up on Jess. He's sitting on the couch, smiling down at his phone. He quickly looks up when he hears me come in.

"Hey", I greet. He nods at me in response. He stares at me blankly, waiting for me to say something.

"So, Lindsay? When did that happen?", I ask, cutting to the chase.

"I'll have to check my calendar, I marked it the day I found true love", he replies sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

"Wow. A week since you met and you're already making out in front of the diner; must be serious", I say with a hint of sarcasm.

"We're both from New York, we go to the same school, and we're both good looking; it worked itself out", he smirks.

"I'm just saying maybe you're taking things a little too fast, don't you think?"

"Nope"

"You obviously care about her"

"She _is_ my girlfriend, sort of part of the deal of dating"

"Yeah but you and Shane were dating and you couldn't care less about her", I point out.

"Well Lindsay's not high on crack everyday", Jess replies a little defensively.

"Well, I'm happy that you're happy. And if Lindsay's what makes you happy, then I'm happy for both of you", I attempt to explain. I was never really good with the lovey-dovey-feeling junk.

He raises his eyebrows as if he doesn't believe me. I get up to go back downstairs and I pat his back on my way out. He calls my name to stop me.

"Can I go away with her this weekend?", he asks suddenly.

"What?", I ask in disbelief.

"Her family's going up to Martha's Vineyard this weekend and they said she could invite me"

"Martha's vineyard? What the hell is that?"

"I'm gonna take a guess and say that it's a vineyard, can I go?"

"You've never been into that stuff, why do you wanna go?"

"Because grapes intrigue me", he sarcastically replies, rolling his eyes.

"It's short notice"

"Come on, Luke! I never ask for anything! I just wanna spend a weekend with my girlfriend"

"I don't know her family, you two just met, I don't think it's a good idea"

"Lu-uke! You said you wanted me to be happy, this'll make me happy", he groans.

"Jess, I have to do what I think is best for you, you can hate me but at least you'll be safe"

"But-"

"End of discussion, Jess. The trial's in a week and I don't have time for stuff like this, understand?"

He glares at me but nods.

"I don't suppose you'll be helping me downstairs today. seeing as your day is filled up with sitting on the couch, doing nothing"

"Not feeling well, you'll just have to do without me for today", he smirks, obviously lying. Then to top it off, he fake coughs twice, then smirks again.

"Very funny, you should become a comedian, maybe it'll pay for that iPod you've been begging for", I reply smirking, then walk out before he can say anything else.

* * *

 **Jess's POV:**

I text Lindsay that I can't go away with her this weekend. She replies with a sad face emoji. After putting my phone down for 10 minutes I get another text, expecting it to be from Lindsay, I immediately open it. To my disappointment it's from one of my friends from school; there's a party going on later tonight at some jock's house. I decide that it would be fun since it's been a while since I've gone out. I quickly re-gel my hair and change my shirt.

I make my way downstairs and to my surprise, Cesar's running around the diner taking orders and stuff, not Luke. I begin to walk to the door when he stops me.

"Where are you going?", Cesar asks.

"None of your business", I reply.

"You think that attitude's gonna win you a night out?"

"Cesar come on, I'm not grounded anymore. And since when do you tell me where I can and can't go?"

"Luke's restocking the pantry, he left me in charge. He told me you're too 'sick' to help out, so you're too sick to go out", he says, putting air quotes around 'sick'.

"I've made a miraculous recovery, now get out of my way"

"So good to hear you've recovered, there's a whole sink full of dirty dishes calling your name"

"Where's Luke? He's easier to wear down than you"

"Pantry", he answers. I walk to the pantry and find Luke on top of a ladder.

"Luke", I call to get his attention. He looks down and sees me then steps down to the floor. "What's up?", he asks.

"Can I go out tonight?", I ask.

"Out where?"

"Just out"

"I have to know where"

"Out to a party", I hesitantly reply.

"Thought you were too sick", he snickers.

"Come on, Luke. You're not letting me go away this weekend, at least let me go out tonight"

He looks like he's thinking. He lets out a sigh, and I know this means he's given in.

"Fine, you have a 10:30 curfew, and try not to get arrested this time"

"I'll try my best", I say, then walk away before he has a chance to change his mind.

I walk past Cesar and smirk.

"Looks like the dishes were calling your name, after all", I mentioned, on my way out.

* * *

It's 10:14 and the party was probably going to be going on through the whole night. But, I promised Luke I would be home by 10:30. I begin to head home, the party was fun, but it sucked to be there alone. Lindsay was unable to come so I sat around the whole night with a couple of my guy friends. A bunch of girls wanted to dance with me, some of them were drunk, some of them weren't but I declined every single one. Usually I wouldn't care, even if I was dating someone, but I didn't want to treat Lindsay like that. There was something about her, but I'm just not sure what it is; I get a special feeling when I'm close to her.

I'm about two minutes away from the diner and it's pitch black outside. One street light is on, but it's on the other side of the street. Every so often I would look behind me, something just felt weird. I felt like I was being followed. When I was sure I heard a footstep behind me I started to walk a little faster, but not fast enough that if there was really somebody behind me, they would think that I was scared. I could now see the diner, it was across the street, that calmed my nervous heartbeat down. I heard footsteps again, this time when I turned around, there was someone behind me. A man in a black shirt and pants was just staring back at me.

"Can I help you?", I sneer, feeling a little too confident.

The man slowly nods his head and I hear footsteps coming from behind me. Another man was charging towards me. I didn't know what to do I just swung my fist. Next thing I knew one of them was out cold on the floor and the other one began to run towards me. He grabbed me and began to pull me back but I kicked his leg back then put him in a headlock. When I let go of him I threw him on the ground and ran full speed towards the diner. This sort of thing happened in New York all the time, but never in Stars Hollow. When I get to the diner I swing the door open and lock it behind me, not noticing that Luke was still with a customer.

"You okay?", he asks me with a puzzled look.

"Yeah, I'm fine", I answer, attempting to control my rapid breathing.

"Mind unlocking the door then? I don't think Ms. Patty is planning to spend the night here", Luke says to me pointing to the customer, who I now realized is Ms. Patty.

She laughs her usual high laugh she does when she gets an inappropriate image in her mind.

"I wouldn't mind", she chorused.

"I would", I mutter, not thinking anyone could hear me. But, Luke apparently did cause he gave me the warning eyes.

I begin to walk upstairs but he stops me.

"Get back down here, you lazy bum, you skipped out of work half the day, at least help me close up", he orders. I roll my eyes and drag myself back downstairs.

I lean on the counter waiting for Patty to finish her coffee so I could finally clear the table then go upstairs.

When she asks for a refill, Luke reluctantly begins to walk back to the kitchen but I quickly walk up to the table.

"We're all out", I lie.

"Oh, then I'll just have a toasted croissant"

Luke once again begins to walk back to the kitchen but I grab his shirt, and pull him back.

"I just had the last one", I lie again.

"How about a-", she begins but I interrupt her.

"Here's your bill, pay it and leave", I say, getting annoyed. Luke shoots me a look.

She puts a 20 on the table and smiles flirtatiously.

"Keep the change", she gushes then winks at Luke. When she walks out the look on Luke's face could not be more relieved. He locks the door behind her and lets out a sigh of relief. I put the 20 in my pocket and Luke just reaches out his hand for me to give it to him. I roll my eyes and give it to him.

"That should be mine, I saved your ass from another hour of Patty time"

"Tell you what, we'll split it"

"Fine"

He hands me a ten dollar bill and I put in my pocket. Luke and I flip the chairs over and put them on top of the table. "So, why were you so jumpy coming in today?", he asks me. I hope he doesn't notice the nervous look on my face. If I tell him what happened he'll never let me out of his sight again.

"Just making sure I got here by 10:30, really don't need another week of staying home", I lie. He lets out a short laugh as he wipes down the table.

"How was the party?"

"Fine"

"Was Lindsay there?"

"Nope"

"Why not?"

"I don't know"

"Are you guys in a fight?"

"What? No!"

"Then why wasn't she at the party?"

"Luke!"

"Okay, okay, calm down. I know you hate it when I ask too many questions, I'll stop being nosy now, I promise"

Luke and I wipe the counter down and he stops talking for a good minute.

"Did Lindsay say why she wasn't there or...?"

"Dammit, Luke!"

"Okay, I'll stop now. I'm done. Just take out the trash and we'll call it a night"

I stare at the overflowing trash bags then back outside where the two people who tried to jump me were probably still there.

"I'm not in the mood", I say.

"What?"

"Can't you just do it tonight?"

"Jess, I'm not tolerating this laziness. I let you off today cause I gave you such a hard time with Lindsay, this isn't going to be an ongoing thing, now I asked you to do something"

"I'm really tired, I'll just take it out tomorrow morning"

"I asked you to do it now"

"I'll do it tomorrow morning, jeez"

"You go to school at 7:45. If it's not outside by 7:00 you're grounded. Got it?"

I nod, not looking up from the counter. I throw the cloth in the sink and Luke does the same. We walk upstairs arguing about how grounding is a cruel and unusual punishment. I make sure to lock the door behind us and Luke gives me a funny look, then goes on to explain how tough love seems to be working on me.


	12. Chapter 12

**Jess's POV:**

"Do we have to do this every morning, Jess? You have an alarm clock for a reason", Luke says, attempting to wake me up. I'm not really asleep, I'm just in sleep mode; my eyes are closed and I'm in bed, but I hear what he says.

"Leave me alone", I mumble, not opening my eyes.

"You have school, time to get up", he tries.

"Five more minutes", I grumbled, flipping over to my side.

"You're leaving me no choice, Jess, are you going to get up, now?"

"No, leave", I mumble.

Finally he stops talking and shaking me. All I hear is the sound of the sink's running water. I just need five more minutes of sleep mode then I'll probably be ready to go.

"Dammit!", I shout as ice cold water gets showered over me in bed.

Luke laughs hysterically.

"Are you up?", he asks, still laughing.

"Why the hell did you do that?", I ask bitterly, getting up to change into dry clothes.

"Now you're wide awake", he smirks.

I roll my eyes, walking to the bathroom to brush my teeth.

"It's 6:30, you have 30 minutes to take out the trash like you promised then 45 minutes of working in the diner. Are we clear?"

"Whatever", I reply, toothbrush in my mouth.

* * *

 **Narrator's POV:**

"Get out of the way", Jess says, as he pushes past everyone with three trash bags in his hands. He forces the bags into the limited number of trash cans that Luke has; he refuses to buy more even though he needs them.

Jess walks back inside and washes his hands. He proceeds to then stand behind the counter next to Luke as Luke talks to a customer. "Are you just going to stand there?", Luke asks, turning to Jess.

"You insist on me standing here for 45 minutes every morning before I go to school"

"I insist on you actually making yourself useful. Just work the counter, I'll do the tables"

"Fine"

Lindsay walks in and greets Jess. He gives her a half smile, not wanting to look too desperate. After looking to make sure Luke wasn't looking, he kisses Lindsay over the counter. She sits down and he pours her some coffee.

"I was thinking we could walk to school together", she offers.

"I'm stuck here for another 40 minutes", Jess explains. She smiles and tells him she can wait. Jess goes on to talk to Lindsay, ignoring all the other customers waiting to order. Luke watches his nephew smile and talk to the girl that has been making him happy. He decides not to walk over there and give him a lecture, he'll notice the other customers eventually.

Lorelai and Rory walk in and sit at the counter.

"Jess, you know the drill, coffee in the cup, pronto", Lorelai demands. "I've been waiting for ten minutes to take my order, you're going have to wait after me", Kirk says to Lorelai. Rory watches Jess ignore everyone and talk to a girl that she's seen around town but never met. She walks over and stands next to the girl.

"Jess, there are people waiting to be served", Rory says, pointing to the line of unhappy customers. He rolls his eyes, and looks back at Lindsay apologetically.

"Go ahead", Lindsay smiles. Jess reluctantly walks down the counter and scribbles everyone's orders down.

Rory walks over to Luke, who surprisingly isn't doing anything about Jess.

"Hey kiddo", Luke greets Rory, as he clears a table.

"Hey, Luke. Do you know who that girl is?", Rory asks, pointing to Lindsay.

"You mean the girl that Jess has been hungover?", he replies, not even looking to see who Rory was pointing to.

"That would be the one"

"Her name's Lindsay, she and Jess are apparently together as of a week ago and he gets all dopey when he sees her", Luke explains, rolling his eyes.

"That would explain things"

"Why? Were they swallowing each other again?", he grunts, looking over to Jess who now went back to talking to Lindsay.

"Not that I know of, I'll keep my eye out for you, though", Rory replies and walks back to sit next to Lorelai. Luke watches his nephew crack his signature smile or smirk, Luke never figured that out; he didn't understand why it made all the girls go crazy, it just looked obnoxious to Luke. Luke walks over to the counter and Jess quickly stands up from his position of leaning over the counter and tries to make himself look busy.

"Hey", Luke greets. Jess nods and proceeds to make himself look busy.

"Hi, Luke", Lindsay says cheerfully.

"Good morning. So, I hear you're going away tomorrow", Luke replies, handing Jess a wash cloth.

"Yeah, my family and I are going up to Martha's Vineyard. I wish Jess could come", the girl exclaims, pouting at the end of her sentence.

Jess cocks his eyebrow at Luke.

"It was just short notice, maybe next time", Luke says dismissively.

"Actually, my parents wanted to invite you both to dinner if you're free tonight", she asks. Jess looks at Luke who looks like he's deciding.

"Well...", Luke begins.

"We'll be there", Jess cuts him off. Lindsay smiles.

"I guess we'll be there", Luke announces, glaring at Jess.

"Unless you want to openly defy child-labor laws, Lindsay and I should be getting to school", Jess smirks, grabbing his backpack and Lindsay's. They walk out the door together and Jess holds the door open for her. Luke has never seen him be such a gentleman.

* * *

 **Luke's POV:**

"I had to reschedule the meeting with my lawyer for this dinner", I tell Jess, as we both get ready.

"I've never met her parents before", he replies, spraying his cologne.

"I don't think you've met any of your girlfriend's parents, why is this girl so different?", I ask.

He shoots me a look that says 'stop talking'. I have a feeling I'll be getting a lot of those looks tonight. He walks into the bathroom and begins to gel his hair.

"Don't make any jokes tonight", he calls from the bathroom.

"Any other requests?", I ask sarcastically. He steps out of the bathroom and stares at me.

"Yeah, try to keep conversation at a minimal", he added. I roll my eyes.

"Don't be so nervous, just be yourself, but nicer", I tell him.

He steps back into the bathroom and continues to gel his hair for a good half hour. He steps out, looking cockier than ever.

"Ever worry that if a bird flies into your hair it might never get out?", I ask in astonishment at his perfectly gelled, dark, messy hair. It just gives him that carefree look.

He glares at me.

"Ready to go?", I ask. He nods and we make our way downstairs.

"Everything under control Cesar?", I ask the man, before Jess and I head out.

"Everything's fine Luke, I got it under control", he answers.

"We don't have time for this, we're gonna be late", Jess complains.

"Am I keeping you away from the girl that's been keeping you from doing basically anything around here?", Cesar smirks.

"Screw you", Jess replies, getting angry.

"Okay that's enough", I break in, pulling Jess away.

"Have a good night, Cesar, I'll see you tomorrow morning", I wave.

"You too, Luke", he chuckles.

* * *

Jess and I pull up in front of a very large house.

"Is her family wealthy?", I ask, stepping out of the car.

"Apparently so", he replies, still staring up at the house.

We walk up the long driveway. This may be the biggest house in all of Stars Hollow, but there aren't many houses even half the size of this one in Stars Hollow.

Jess rings the doorbell and I could see how nervous he looks. A woman in a housekeeping uniform answers the door.

"I'm looking for Lindsay Lister", Jess states, almost as a question.

"You must be Jess and Luke, Mr. and Mrs. Lister have been expecting you, please come in", she smiles. I look at Jess in amazement once we step inside, it's even grander from the inside.

I immediately see Lindsay rushing towards Jess and hugging him, even though she and Jess had been getting very close, I could still notice Jess flinching. He doesn't really like to be touched.

"Hi, Lindsay", I greet, still looking around the amazing house.

Two more people walk in and I guess they are Lindsay's parents.

"Jess, Luke, these are my parents, Benjamin and Katherine", she introduces.

"So nice to finally meet the boy my daughter has been gushing over", the man says, putting his hand out for Jess to shake. Jess gives a half smile, nervously and shakes his hand.

"You must be his Uncle, Luke", the man continues, turning to me, shaking my hand.

"Nice to meet you, Benjamin", I reply.

Lindsay's mother pulls Jess into a hug and he once again flinches but keeps a smile on his face. I shake her hand.

"Shall we?", her father insisted, leading us to the dining room. Lindsay takes Jess's hand and I walk with Benjamin and Katherine.

Once we're seated, the housekeeper that opened the door is now pouring everyone a drink. I sit across from Jess, who's sitting next to Lindsay, Katherine is sitting at one end and Benjamin is sitting at the other end of the table. I notice an empty seat next to me with a plate and cup.

"Is someone else coming?", I ask, motioning to the empty spot.

"Yes, our son should be down any second", Katherine replies.

"You have a brother?", Jess asks Lindsay.

"Unfortunately, yes", she answers.

"Lindsay, don't be rude", Benjamin warns.

"So, Luke, Lindsay tells me you own a small business in town, tell me about it", Benjamin says to me.

Jess shoots me a warning look.

"Yeah, I do. I own a diner in town, Jess helps me out sometimes", I explain. I could see Jess blush just the tiniest bit.

"Oh, you own a diner?", Katherine confirms, sounding uncomfortable.

"Yep"

"That's nice", she notes.

"What do you do, Benjamin?", I ask, trying to avoid an awkward silence.

"I own a law firm. It's actually the reason we had to move from New York to Stars Hollow, my business relocated me"

I nod, unsure of how to respond.

"Daddy, Jess does a lot of reading, like you", Lindsay beams, putting her hand on Jess's shoulder.

"Is that so? What do you like to read?"

"Hemingway, Shakespeare, Dickens, Bukowski, anything really, sir", Jess answers.

Benjamin looks impressed. "That's a fine collection, young man, James Joyce was always one of my favorites", he mentions.

"Ulysses was one of his bests", Jess comments.

"Oh, you've read it? That was always my favorite"

"Yes, sir. I really enjoyed it, his way with words really captured my attention", Jess replies. I've never heard Jess call anybody 'sir'. He sounds so formal. He sounds like a completely different kid from the one who stole lawn gnomes and faked murder scenes just a few months back.

I watch Jess continue to talk about his favorite quotes from the book, I just felt a sense of pride listening him go on and on about things that I could never understand.

I hear footsteps coming down the stairs.

"It must be Shawn, that boy is always late to dinner", Katherine says.

"Shawn?", Jess says as a question.

Lo and behold the same boy who was with Shane not too long ago in the diner stood before us. He looked just as surprised to see Jess and I.

"What's going on?", he asks, staring at Jess.

"Remember, we told you we were meeting Lindsay's boyfriend and his uncle tonight?", Katherine replies.

"Sit down next to Luke", Benjamin says to the boy, motioning to me.

"Jess, this is my brother Shawn", Lindsay announces.

"We've met", Jess replies bitterly.

"Yeah, he served me coffee", Shawn smirks.

"Isn't it a small world?", Benjamin comments.

"Nope, just a small town", I chimed in.

The rest of the night was weird after that. Benjamin and I did most of the talking, I kept seeing Jess out of the corner of my eye, shooting death stares at Shawn.

"So,", Shawn begins, starting a conversation for the first time that night, "you help your uncle out in his diner, isn't that right, Jess?"

"That's right", Jess replies, in my opinion, a little too cheerfully.

"I'm assuming you have better plans for the future", Shawn continues, obviously trying to get Jess mad. Jess glances over to me as if he's apologizing for Shawn's behavior.

"Shawn, that was so rude", Lindsay says.

"No, it's okay Lindsay, he was just asking a question", Jess says, smiling. I knew that smile, it was his smile that meant you were about to be sorry for what you just said. Everyone stares at Jess, waiting for him to say something, including me.

"You would assume so, wouldn't you? You know what they say about people who assume things. You make an ass out of you and me. My plans for the future will be decided when and if I want to make plans for the future. I'm pretty happy where I am. I've gotta roof, food, clothes on my back and if I gotta bust a few tables and take out the trash to keep that, I'd say that's a small price to pay", Jess explains, locking his eyes on Shawn. I don't think I've ever heard Jess talk that much in one night.

My mouth, along with everyone else's in the room, is hung open. Shawn wiped the smirk off his face and started picking at his food.

"That's quite a way to look at things", Benjamin pondered.

"I believe it's the only way", Jess replies.

"I think that you misunderstood what Shawn was asking, I think what Shawn meant to say was...", Katherine begins but Jess interrupts her.

"No, I know what Shawn said and I know what it meant. I'm not stupid. I may not live in a huge house, my uncle may not be some big-shot lawyer, but I'm not stupid", Jess argues. Once again everyone is left in shock.

"You need to relax", Shawn provokes Jess.

"Shawn, stop!", Lindsay yells.

"Lindsay don't yell at the dinner table", Benjamin says.

"I think we better get going, it was a lovely dinner, we had a great time", I quickly interject before things get any more heated.

"At least nobody got orange juice thrown at them", Shawn continues.

"Not yet, at least", Jess threatens.

I grab Jess and pull him away as fast as I can. The Listers stare at us go, not saying a word.

As soon as we're outside, Jess storms to the car, not saying a word.

"Are you okay?", I ask, once I get in the car.

"I'm fine", he mumbles with his arms crossed.

"You don't look fine", I respond, pulling out of the driveway.

"Whatever", he mutters.

Jess puts on his loud rock music on high volume the whole car ride and closes his eyes. I nearly went deaf but I decided to let him get away with it.

I nudge him after I park the car.

"We're home", I tell him.

He drags himself out of the car and slams the car door behind him. It's amazing how fast his mood can change; one second he's all in love and all that junk and the next second he's back to bitter, angry, rock music.

"It really wasn't that bad", I try.

Jess scoffs.

"I'm never gonna be allowed near her again"

"It wasn't your fault, that kid was being a douche and you were just defending yourself"

"Screw him, screw that whole family"

"Come on, Jess. You really liked Lindsay"

"Bunch of snobs", he sneers.

"More importantly Jess, you defended me tonight. So thanks for that"

"Whatever"

I pat him on the back as we walk upstairs. Hopefully soon all this craziness will be over. I'll be able to go to sleep not worried about Liz, the trial, Jess's safety, or anything. That'll all be determined soon enough; the trial's in less than a week.

 **This was sort of a filler chapter, sorry if it was boring, it's gonna get a little crazier. Comment what you want to see in the next few chapters.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Luke's POV:**

I've been trying to keep Jess busy since the dinner incident, to keep his mind off Lindsay. I told him I would raise his hourly pay in the diner if he worked a few extra shifts. He declined the offer at first but after thinking about it, he accepted.

"Jess, table three has been waiting for refills for 10 minutes", I point out to him.

"If they think nodding to me from the other side of the diner will get them a refill, they can keep waiting", Jess replies, taking out his phone. I roll my eyes and grab the coffee pitcher to pour refills.

"How come he gets to have his phone when just last week, you refused to serve me coffee cause I took a phone call?", Lorelai asks, walking to the counter.

"He doesn't", I reply, glaring at Jess. Jess rolls his eyes and puts his phone away.

"Wow, two grumpy Danes' boys in one place", she jokes, sitting down.

"Stop talking", Jess mutters, walking away.

"What's his deal?", Lorelai asks me, once Jess is out of earshot.

"There was an incident at Lindsay's parents' house", I answer.

"Incident? What kind of incident?"

"The kind where Jess started actually talking out of anger rather than just the usual death stares"

"That bad, huh?"

"Jess thinks so"

I pour Lorelai her coffee and she starts talking about this movie she saw. She stops talking when we hear the sound of a cup falling and breaking. Some lady dropped her coffee.

"Jess, mind cleaning that up?", I ask, when he walks over.

"Yep", he replies, taking out his book.

"There's a mop in the back", I tell him.

"I said I mind", he says, not looking up.

"Jess...", I say in a warning tone. He was used to hearing his name as a warning.

"I'm not in the mood for this", he announces, beginning to head upstairs.

"Jess!"

"What?!"

I pause to inhale and exhale slowly. I don't wanna give the kid a hard time and yelling definitely won't get me anywhere.

"Would you please just go clean up the mess? Then you can take an early lunch"

He thinks about this for a moment, then rolls his eyes.

"Fine", he mumbles as he goes to get the mop.

I turn back to Lorelai and she gives me an understanding look.

"I don't know what I'm going to do, I'm meeting with my lawyer later today and I'm just on edge. I can't wait for this damned trial to be over, I have to prove once and for all that Liz is not fit to take care of Jess, asshole of a boyfriend aside, and that I should be granted full custody", I confide in Lorelai.

"It's all going to work itself out Luke, don't worry", she smiles, putting her hand on my shoulder.

"I sure hope so", I sigh, watching Jess struggle to mop up the spilled coffee and broken glass.

* * *

 **Jess's POV:**

I know Luke thinks he has to keep me busy cause he's worried that I'm all upset over Lindsay. I'm not a little kid, I can handle these things on my own. He's had me in the diner ever since I got home from school.

The diner's empty except for Kirk, who refuses to be served by me. I sit on top of the counter and Luke comes and leans on the counter next to me.

"I swear, he spends more and more time here everyday", I comment. Luke gives a short laugh in agreement.

"I'm meeting with someone here in a few minutes, when they come, you can go upstairs", he tells me.

"Why can't I be here?", I question, getting curious.

"Just take the opportunity to leave early and don't question it", he states.

"But-", I begin firmly but he cuts me off.

"This is important, Jess. Don't argue with me"

"Whatever" I shrug, hopping off the counter.

I go to pour Kirk a refill and he quickly stops me.

"What, now? Afraid I poisoned your coffee?"

"I think I better get going", he replies, quickly standing up.

"I think that's a fantastic idea", I agree as he throws a ten dollar bill on the table, speed walking away.

"No tip?", Luke asks, sarcastically.

In a matter of time, Luke's 'visitor' had arrived.

"Jess, go finish your homework", Luke ordered when I didn't immediately go upstairs as soon as the man in the suit walked in.

"All done", I state.

He shoots me a warning look that means enough is enough.

"I'll be upstairs", I concluded, walking upstairs.

The last thing I hear is Luke saying, "let me review the case". He's meeting with the lawyer for the trial. I had completely forgotten about the trial with everything going on.

I sit down on the couch with a book in my hand. I realize I'm not in the reading mood so I look out the window. It was pitch black outside, just like the night I had came home from the party. The same night I was jumped. I never really gave that a second thought. They were probably just low-lives that needed money.

I take out my phone to keep myself busy. The first thing I come across are my text messages with Lindsay, the last thing she texted me was, 'see you at dinner tonight :)'. God, I don't know what this feeling is, but I'm getting it. I almost miss her. And I never miss anyone. I need to get her back. There's like this lump in my throat when I think about her.

There's only one thing that comes to mind that I can do to get her back, and Luke's not going to be too happy about it. I'm sneaking out tomorrow night to go to Martha's Vineyard.

* * *

 **Luke's POV:**

It's finally Friday. Jess just got back from school and he and I have to spend the whole weekend reviewing the case and preparing for the trial.

"Hey, Jess? Mind coming over here for a second?", I ask my nephew, who's sitting at the counter, reading a book.

"What?", he calls from the other side of the diner, not looking up.

"I need you to come here", I repeat. Realizing this isn't going to get me anywhere, I stand up and walk over to him.

"I wanna go over some of the points my lawyer is going to make in the trial, to make sure it's okay with you", I explain as I hand him a packet.

"Say whatever you want, I don't care. Just win", he states, still not looking up.

I sigh, realizing I have to choose my words very carefully for what I'm about to ask. "Have you thought about your decision to lie about your visit to New York?", I ask. Now he looks up.

"She's my mom, she's screwed up, but she's still my mom"

"I understand you want to protect her. And trust me, Frank and I are going to be having a little talk after the trial, but other than the deformation of his face that I will cause, we could get him behind bars. Protecting your mom comes with protecting that ass"

"The only thing she's ever done is not care about me, and that's not a crime", he mumbles, getting up and walking out.

"Jess, wait", I call after him, but he's already out the door.

* * *

 **Jess's POV:**

I'm gonna go get Lindsay back. I don't really have a game plan; I'm just gonna walk to the bus stop and get to Martha's Vineyard, hopefully my efforts will be enough apology for the dinner scene I caused.

The sun was starting to set and I was getting ready to go. I stopped by Doose's Market and grabbed some stuff I would need for the journey. I would head out as soon as there was no one left in the streets, in a town like this, even if just one person saw me get on a bus, the entire population of Stars Hollow would know about it in a matter of minutes.

I sat on a bench, reading a book, waiting for the city to go to sleep. I had gotten numerous texts from Luke wondering where I was. I simply texted back, "I'm okay, I'll be home tomorrow". He wasn't too happy with that response. Within two seconds of the text being delivered, my phone began buzzing with message after message from Luke. He also called four times, but by the fifth ring I turned off my phone completely. Looking around, I can't see a soul in sight, that's my cue to begin to head out. I'll take a bus to the train station and then a two hour train to Massachusetts, then I'll walk to Martha's Vineyard.

I begin walking in the silent darkness of the night. It was darker than usual and a little windy too. The blowing of the wind was the only thing I could hear. I feel a little uneasy tonight, it feels way too much like the night coming back from the party. I feel alert. I take a nervous glance around and begin to walk faster, I feel an unusual presence. My chest tightens at the feeling of uncertainty and anxiety. I nearly jump out of my skin when I hear a branch break behind me. I have the instinct to turn around again but can't bring myself to move, I stand there staring out into the path I should be taking, but instead I stand there. I try to take a few calming breaths but after hearing the sound of another branch break, my heart rate increases again, this time sending me sprinting towards the bus stop.

I make it to the bus stop in no longer than five minutes; I sprinted the whole way. I take a seat on the bench and wait for the late bus, feeling kind of childish for getting so frightened. I had checked the bus schedule and the late bus to the train station had been set to arrive in ten minutes. I thought I was the only one there but after reaching into my bag to get a book then looking back up, a man stood a few feet away from me. My stomach dropped at the sight of him, but I relaxed myself after he didn't make any moves near me. We both wait there in the dark, only source of light coming from a street lamp.

I continue to steal glances at him out of paranoia.

"Do you have the time?", the man suddenly asks me.

"What?", I ask, being caught off guard.

"The time?", he repeats.

"Uh, yeah, quarter to eleven", I reply hesitantly.

"Thank you", the man replies, smiling.

I nod, getting slightly creeped out by his overly enthusiastic smile.

The man starts to laugh. He laughs and laughs for a good ten seconds. I look at him laughing, very confused. He had the laugh of a villain, a menacing laugh. I couldn't quite figure out what was so funny. It certainly got my attention though, that's when it hit me, I turned around to find another man. The laugh had been a distraction; it was happening again.

The second man came out of the dark and into the low light where I could at least make out his face. It was Frank. My heart's beat is now more than just a thud, it's more than pounding, it's more than racing.

"So nice to see you again, _son_ ", he hissed, grinning.

I got up quickly to make a run for it when the other man grabbed me.

"What do you want from me?", I demanded, yelling, trying to break free of the man's grip.

Frank slowly walked towards me, grinning ear to ear.

"I'm gonna bring you home, Jess. You, me, and Liz are gonna be a great, big, happy family", he smirks.

When he comes near me I kick him, causing him to cry out, "Dammit!".

"Let me go!", I yell, trying to break loose.

"Get him in the trunk", Frank orders the other man, rubbing his chest where I kicked him.

"No! Get off of me!", I yell.

The man shoves me into the back trunk then raises his arm to punch me. It all goes black after that...

 **PLEASE LEAVE ME A REVIEW, IT INSPIRES ME TO WRITE, COMMENT YOUR PREDICTIONS FOR THE NEXT CHAPTER :)**


	14. Chapter 14

_**FREQUENT POV CHANGES**_

 **Luke's POV:**

I pace around nervously in the apartment, I hadn't gone downstairs yet and there was a line forming outside the building. I had been up all night calling Jess, the police, anyone I could think of. Jess's calls went straight to voicemail, the police said I had to wait 24 hours before filing a missing person's report, and no one else had seen him.

"Jesus Christ", I exclaim out loud when it hits me. Jess snuck up to Martha's Vineyard. Where else would he have gone? He texted me saying that he was safe and that he would be back today, I feel like such an idiot. I quickly dialed Lindsay's father's number which I had from a business card he gave me during the dinner. I called two times and no answer. On the third call he finally picked up.

"Hello?", I say frantically over the phone.

"Hello, this is Benjamin Lister, I'm on vacation right now, I'm going to have to call you back", the voice over the phone replies, almost sounding like a voicemail.

"No, Benjamin, it's Luke! Jess's uncle! Listen to me, Jess is missing, is he up there with Lindsay?"

"Luke? Why are you calling me?"

"Jess is missing! Is he up there with you guys?"

"Oh dear, I'm sorry, I haven't heard from him"

"Can you please check? Ask Lindsay, ask anybody, please, I'm desperate", I beg.

"Can you hang on for a minute?"

I feel like screaming 'no' through the phone at the top of my lungs but that won't get me anywhere. I impatiently wait for his voice to come back on.

"Luke? Are you still there?"

"Yes, I'm still here, is Jess up there?"

"I asked Lindsay, she said she hasn't heard from Jess either. I'm sorry I couldn't be of more assistance to you, best of luck"

"Thanks", I mutter before hanging up the phone.

This is awful, this is terrible. I continue to pace around trying to think of where else he could be.

The door to my apartment swing open and Lorelai rushes in.

"Luke! I am so sorry I couldn't get here earlier", she exclaims.

"He's gone! He's missing!", I yell.

"It's okay, Luke I promise you, we will find him and we'll bring him home", she assures me, pulling me into a hug.

"Where do you think he could be?", she asks.

"The only place I could think of was that damned trip he wanted to go on with Lindsay's family, but I already asked, he's not up there"

"Okay, where else?"

"I can't think of anywhere else he would...", I start. My voice drifts off when I realize my worst nightmare's could be coming true.

"Luke? What's wrong?"

"Son of a bitch!"

"Who's a son of a bitch?"

"I have to go right now", I announce, quickly grabbing my keys, I don't have much time. I hear Lorelai following me but I don't turn around. I need to hurry. "Get a cop to follow my car!", I say to Lorelai, before jumping into my car and speeding off.

* * *

 **Jess's POV:**

I wake up and the aroma of alcohol and tobacco fills my nose. I try to get up but realize that I'm tied up.

"Good morning, sunshine", a male voice choruses from behind me. I can't turn around to see who it is but I don't need to because Frank slowly appears in front of me.

"Where am I?", I ask.

"You don't remember from your visit?", he replies. I look around and realize that it's Liz's apartment. Of course.

"Why am I here?", I demand, struggling to break free.

"Lizzy just wanted to see her boy again, and rather than wait for a judge to tell us we can have you forever, I decided to take matters into my own hands", he replies, smirking.

"Let me go!", I scream. He just laughs in my face.

"And disappoint Liz? Never"

"Then where the hell is she? I don't see her embracing you with thanks for kidnapping me"

"Got drunk and passed out. She should be up in a few hours thanking me for bringing her baby back, then we'll be ready to go"

"I'm not going anywhere with you!"

"We're going on a nice, family vacation. Somewhere where no one will disturb our happy family"

"You're insane!"

He walks over and slaps me. My face stings with burning pain.

My leg is long enough for me to kick him in the crotch.

"Son of a bitch!", he yells, clutching his crotch.

"You got that right", I mutter under my breath.

"Try something like that again and you won't even be able to feel your leg", he threatens.

I watch him grab his coat and begin to head outside.

"Where are you going?", I ask.

"To get some stuff for our family vacation", he smirks.

"Liz'll wake up eventually and even she's not crazy enough to condone this"

"Say that again after the first round of cocktails she'll have as soon as she wakes up", he replies, now walking over to me. He puts a piece of tape over my mouth and runs his fingers through my hair. I've never felt so disgusted. I try to break free and yell but nothing come out and it just looks like I'm wiggling uncontrollably. After laughing at the sight of me struggle, he walks out of the apartment.

* * *

I don't know how long I've been sitting here, tied up, it feels like 8 hours but I doubt it's been more than two. I keep stomping my feet in hopes of at least waking Liz up, but all that's accomplished is making me lose feeling in my legs. I can't believe this is happening; it can't be happening. I can't even imagine the things Frank and drunk Liz would do to make my life a living hell.

The only part of my body that I am able to move is the bottom part of my leg, I can't even straighten my knee. I've now lost all feeling in my feet so I'm not even going to attempt to stand up. Standing up and falling back down to break the chair was the first thing I attempted, and half my ass is still numb as a result. I keep thinking about Luke, has he figured out by now where I am? He probably thinks I'm at the vineyard with Lindsay's family, which was my original plan.

My thoughts are interrupted when the apartment door swinging open and Frank walking in. He chuckles when he sees me. He then walks over to me and yanks the tape off my mouth, causing a greater deal of pain than any slap or punch I've had today.

"Why are you doing this to me?", I quietly ask, feeling defeated.

"Because...", he begins but I interrupt him.

"And don't give me all that 'Liz wants me' crap cause I know you don't give a shit about her", I say.

He simply grins, walks over to me, and slaps me in the face.

"I love having a little toy to beat around", he answers.

"And you think Liz'll be okay with that?"

"Let me tell you how this is going to work, she's going to wake up, still hungover, notice you're here and she'll give you a hug or some emotional crap like that, not even notice that you're tied up, have sex with me tonight for bringing her baby back, and then we all go somewhere where nobody'll even come looking for us", he explains.

I hated to admit it, but he was right. I sat there feeling defeated.

Just when I had given up all hope, the door to the bedroom swung open, and out came a hungover Liz.

"Mom! Get me out of here!", I yell.

She squints and then rubs her head.

"What's Jess doing here?", she asks, yawning.

"I brought him home baby", Frank replies proudly.

"Mom he kidnapped me! Please help!", I beg.

"He doesn't look too happy", she comments, ignoring me.

"We're gonna be a big, happy family like you wanted, honey. Cheers!", he says, raising a beer bottle and giving my mom one too.

My mom drinks half of it in one sip and a wide grin spreads to her face.

"My baby's back!", she exclaims, wrapping her arms around me, not even noticing I'm restrained.

"Untie me, right now!", I yell.

"Why are you tied up?", she asks.

"Cause your boyfriend attacked me and kidnapped me!"

"That's nice, sweetie, can you keep it down? I have a massive headache", she mumbles, laying down on the couch.

"Luke's gonna come after me, he's gonna know you took me", I tell Frank.

"By the time he figures it out, we'll already be out of here, don't you worry your pretty little head", he smirks.

* * *

 **Luke's POV:**

After looking through a million documents, I found the address that Liz gave Jess when he went to visit. I have squad cars following me to Liz's apartment. I park in front of the apartment and get out of the truck. An officer comes out from one of the cars.

"My nephew's in there", I say.

"Rest assured, we'll get him out of harm's way", he tells me over the blaring noise of sirens.

"No, I'm going in there first. Then you guys come in and arrest the douche bag's, who kidnapped my nephew, unconscious body"

"I wouldn't advise that, this guy could be armed"

"Jess is in there, i don't care what happens to me, I'm getting Jess out of there. Stay behind me, do whatever you want, but I'm going in first", I state.

"If that's how you wanna do things", he reluctantly replies, going to tell the other policemen how we're going to do things.

I reach into my jacket to make sure my pocket knife was still in its place. That Frank thinks he can mess with my family? He's gonna be sorry he ever laid a hand on Jess.

* * *

 **Jess's POV:**

I watch Frank calmly pack a bag with his toothbrush, some underwear, a change of clothes, and some beer bottles. He's calm until the sound of sirens come from outside the small window.

"The hell?", he says out loud, going to see where the sound was coming from.

"Liz!", he shouts. Liz automatically wakes up.

"There's a dozen cop cars outside, don't say a word, I'll take care of the kid", he barks.

Liz just goes back to her position on the couch, passed out.

"Help!", I begin to scream at the top of my lungs.

"Shut up, you bastard, no one's gonna hear you"

He puts a piece of tape over my mouth and drags the chair I'm tied up on, into the bedroom and locks the door behind him. I'm locked up in the same room as Frank.

"If you make one noise, I'll snap your neck in an instant", he threatens. I glare up at him and pray to god that the police find me.

* * *

 **Luke's POV:**

I press my ear against apartment door, I don't hear a sound. I don't know what to make of the silence. Maybe Jess isn't here and on one side that couldn't be so bad because this is the absolute worst place he could be, and on the other side that would mean Jess was still missing.

I don't even bother knocking, I kick the door down, with one try. I storm in only to find Liz passed out on the couch.

"Liz? What the hell is going on?", I shout.

"Luke? What are you doing here?", she mutters, obviously hungover.

"Where the hell is Jess?", I demand.

"Big, happy family", she mutters before going back to sleep. I search the small apartment. The closets, pantry, everything. The last door is locked. I pound my hand on it.

"Jess! Are you in there?"

Silence. I pound the door down only to find Frank sitting on his bed, smirking up at me.

"What the hell did you do with Jess, you asshole"

"I'm going to have to ask you to leave my apartment", he simply says, as he stands up in front of me.

I raise my fist to punch him but he catches it and twists my arm. I shove him down and I'm now on top of him swinging my arms in any direction I can. I hear muffled voices coming from the bedroom closet and try to get up to walk in there but he pulls me down and smacks my head.

I manage to get up and he makes a lunge for me. I grab a lamp and smack his head with it. He falls down but quickly gets back up.

"It's over! The police are downstairs waiting, give it up!", I shout, trying to avoid his fist.

"What are they gonna do with a dead body? They can lock me up, but at the end of the day, he'd still be dead"

"I know he''s not dead!", I yell, as he puts me into a headlock.

"Not yet. The police come through that door, I'll kill him without giving it a second thought"

He now has me pinned down on the floor and I know that if i take one more hit, I'll be blacked out. I subtly take my pocket knife out of my jacket, with one loose arm. And as he's about to punch me, I dig the knife deep into his shoulder causing him to fall back. Blood pours out of his arm but I ignore him and rush to the closet.

I nearly break the door down but it was all worth it. I find a frightened Jess, tied up in the closet with a black eye, and tape over his mouth.

"It's okay Jess, I'm here now", I say, gently getting the tape off his mouth. The police rush in to arrest Liz and drag Frank out of the apartment. I untie Jess and pull him into a bear hug. I let him just stay in my arms, safely. I can see him try to hold back tears but after multiple sniffles, the tears start streaming down his face.

"Shh. Shh. I'm here now, Jess. You're gonna be okay, son", I whisper, as he rests his head on my neck.

"Luke, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry", he keeps repeating through his sobs.

Jess is shaking, I have him in my arms. I get up only when the police come into the bedroom.

"We took them into custody, Mr. Danes", a police officer informs me.

I nod, still having Jess in my arms.

"Are you okay? Do you need to get any injuries checked out?", an officer asks him.

"I just wanna go home", he mumbles.

"We'll have an officer drive your car back and we'll give you both a ride home in a squad car.

"Are you okay with that Jess?", I gently ask him.

He nods, still standing close to me.

I guide him down to the police car and we both take a seat inside. He rests his head on my shoulder and I continue to rub his back.

"I love you, son. You're safe now, Jess. You're safe", I assure him when I notice he's still shaking. We relax as much as we can in the back of a police car and take a long ride back to Stars Hollow. Home.

* * *

 **Comment your thoughts on this chapter. I'm sad, this fanfic is almost over :( But it's not over yet :)**


	15. Chapter 15

**-this is the last chapter :(-**

 **Luke's POV:**

The police car pulled up in front of the diner and there were a crowd of people outside. I'm not sure if they're here to give Jess their best and all that stuff or they're waiting for me to open, probably both. Jess had fallen asleep on my shoulder so I gently nudged him. He awoke slowly and I pointed to the crown of people outside of the diner. Lorelai rushes to the police car and opens the door for us. She hugs Jess and I when we get out of the car. Jess is the first to pull out of the hug.

"I wanna head up, if that's okay", he says.

"Sure, I'll come with you, let me just tell everyone they're wasting their time here because I'm not opening today", I reply.

"They all came to see Jess", Lorelai informs me.

"Why? Doesn't everyone in this town hate me?", he asks.

I walk in front of the door to get everyone's attention.

"Thank you all for coming. Jess and I really appreciate you all coming out and seeing to it that he's okay", I announce, loud enough for everyone to hear. Everyone claps.

"We love you guys", someone from the crowd shouts. I can tell that's just about crossing Jess's comfort zone, so I cut to the chase.

"I'm sure you can all understand, the diner won't be open for a few days; Jess and I need some time", I continue.

"Take your time", Babette yells.

I unlock the door to the diner and Jess and I walk in and close the door behind us.

"Lock it, would you? It's like everyone's a psycho these days", Jess mutters.

"Good to have you back, Jess", I reply, locking the door behind me. We both make our way upstairs.

* * *

Jess had just gotten out of the shower and I made him some lasagna because I know it's his favorite. I expected him to take his plate and sit at the couch, but to my surprise he sat down at the table with me.

"You must be starving", I comment.

"No kidding", he replies, stuffing a forkful of food in his mouth.

"How's your eye?", I ask.

"Getting better"

"Are you sure you don't wanna get it checked out? I mean we could go right now or tomorrow, I could get my keys, if it's bothering..."

"Luke", he interrupts.

"What?"

"You're babbling", he says, smiling a real smile, not a smirk.

"Sorry", I reply, cracking a smile.

"Do we still have to go to the trial tomorrow morning? I mean it's pretty obvious I'm not gonna be calling Frank, "daddy' anytime soon"

"Yeah we do", I answer.

Jess groans, realizing he has to wake up early.

"Because that's when I'll be awarded the official title of being your guardian", I announce, grinning ear to ear.

Jess tries to cover up a smile with a smirk but I can tell the kid's happy.

"So that means I'm stuck with you, huh?", he jokes.

"Afraid so"

I put the dirty dishes in the sink then take a seat next to Jess on the couch. I turn on the tv so Jess and I could make fun of some tv show like we always do. We were just about to comment on the hairstyles of the 'Full House' cast when something hit the window. It sounded like a rock. Jess and I get up to see what it was. He presses his face against the window and when he turns back to me he rolls his eyes.

"Unbelievable", he comments, laughing to himself.

"What?", I ask.

"The Gilmore girls are paying us a visit", he says.

I open the window and stick my head out.

"Stop throwing rocks at my window, what are you, 12?", I call.

"Just let us in, we're, oh, so cold", Lorelai calls back in an extra high voice.

I go downstairs and Jess follows me.

"Unlock the door, I'll get the coffee ready", I tell him.

He unlocks the door and lets them in.

"Hey, there you are! Where have you been for the past 24 hours?", Lorelei jokes as she and Rory come in.

Jess rolls his eyes and pulls the chairs off from on top of the tables.

"Jess, mind giving me a hand with these?", I ask, holding out Rory and Lorelai's coffees. Jess takes the coffee cups from my hand and places them in front of Rory and Lorelai.

"Thanks, Luke!", Rory and Lorelai say in unison.

I come out from behind the counter and sit down with the girls. I see Jess leaning on the counter, reading a book.

"Get over here", I say to him. He rolls his eyes but pulls up a chair next to me.

"So what, you just wanted a cup of coffee? Why the sudden appearance?", I ask.

"We came to bother you", Lorelai answers.

"And to see how Jess was doing", Rory adds.

Jess looks up from his book and I could swear I saw a smile somewhere buried deep into that smirk.

"I'm not bleeding or anything"

"Yikes. By the looks of it you were. How's the eye?", Lorelei says.

"Better", he mumbles.

"Are you grounded or does the whole getting kidnapped thing rise above the sneaking out thing?", Lorelai asks.

Jess turns to me, as if to say, 'well?".

I sigh and roll my eyes. "I'm not gonna ground you, but, we're gonna set some stricter rules for when and where you can go", I answer.

"Fair enough", he replies, digging his head back into his book.

I ruffle his hair up and Lorelai joins me in messing up the curly, dark hair.

"Hey!", he barks, fixing his hair.

"Okay then Rory, I think we're done here. We threw rocks at Luke's window, got our coffee, I feel pretty accomplished, what about you?", she says to Rory.

"Same here", Rory agrees, gathering her stuff.

"Leaving so soon?", Jess mutters, pretending to sound upset.

"Don't you worry your pretty little hair, we'll be back tomorrow", Lorelai declares.

"We're not open tomorrow", I say, beginning to get up.

"We'll still be here", she assures me.

I hold the door open for them and we exchange "good night's" as they exit, leaving Jess and I.

"We should start heading up, big day tomorrow", I note.

He nods. I expected him to head up immediately, leaving me to clean up the mess. But, surprisingly, without being asked, he begins to clear the table we were sitting at. It's little things like this that reminds me that he actually cares. I wash the cups and he dries them, putting them back into the cabinet. After we're done, I thank him for helping me and he once again nods.

Jess puts his music on as usual and immediately goes to sleep. I watch him for a minute, realizing that tomorrow's the day where he's officially going to be my kid. That feels amazing.

* * *

 **Jess's POV:**

"Jess, come on, wake up", Luke softly, shakes me.

I open my eyes and stare up at his smiling face.

"Today's the day", he announces. I sit up right in my bed, next to Luke.

"Last chance to kick me out", I joke.

"Not funny, smart ass", Luke replies.

I chuckle at my own joke for a second.

"Okay, I set out some clothes for you, you can hate me for this, but you're gonna have to wear a tie", he acknowledges.

I groan, getting up, and stretching my arms. I walk over to the bathroom and brush my teeth, when I walk out, I notice Luke setting a breakfast table up with all my favorites.

"I'm not...", I begin to tell him I'm not hungry but then I notice the proud look on his face. So I give in and put some bacon in my mouth.

I attempt to put on a tie and Luke laughs at the sight of me getting impatient.

"Do you need some help?", he asks with a smirk, obviously knowing the answer.

He walks over and within a minute he steps back, I look in the mirror and see the tie perfectly hanging on my shirt.

"Lorelai taught me", he explains.

"Figures", I respond, combing my hair back.

"Hey, Jess?", he says.

"Yeah?"

"You look good in a tie"

* * *

Luke and I arrive at the courtroom and take our seats next to our lawyer. Liz and Frank come in in handcuffs and sit down at the table opposite us, surrounded by police.

The judge walks in and everyone stands up, I stand up a little after everyone because I didn't realize we were supposed to.

"You may be seated", the judge announces two seconds after I stand up.

The courtroom door opens and closes and everyone turns around to see who walked in late. To my surprise and Luke's, it was Lorelai and Rory.

After they sit down they smile at us and wave frantically, Rory gives us a thumbs up. Luke and I look at each other and we're both holding back smiles.

"The custody case between Lucas Danes, the uncle of, and Elizabeth Danes, the mother of, Jess Mariano", a lady in a suit announces.

"Is the defender ready?", the judge says.

Luke and his lawyer stand up.

"Yes, your honor", the lawyer answers.

"State your opening argument", the judge orders.

"Lucas Danes, the uncle of 16 year old Jess Mariano, should have full custody of the minor. Elizabeth Danes is not a fit guardian, which has been proven time and time again. Elizabeth Danes should not be allowed near her son.", The lawyer states and sits back down.

"Thank you. Is the defendant ready?"

Liz stands up in tears.

"Yes, your honor. I just want to say I'm so sorry, Jess. I wasn't thinking. I'm sorry Frank ever hurt you, he didn't mean to. I love you so much", she bawls.

I can't help but roll my eyes.

"Due to the recent activities and charges being placed against you and your partner. The state has deemed you unfit to care for your son. We're here today to grant your brother full custody of Jess Mariano. You misunderstood the reason of the hearing, we're here to determine whether you will get a restraining order placed against you to restrict you from seeing your son once you get out of prison", the judge explains to Liz. She starts to cry louder.

"Please, I just want to see my son", she begs, standing up again. Luke looks at me to make sure I'm okay. Police officers pull Liz back down.

"Franklin Barnett, partner of Elizabeth Danes, will be facing charges for physical abuse and kidnapping of a minor. He will face 13 years of jail time without parole. Elizabeth Danes will face 4 years of jail time with the possibility of parole for child neglect, consent of kidnapping, and for being an alibi to Franklin Barnett. Lucas Danes will be granted full custody of Jess Mariano. Today the jury and I will decide whether or not Elizabeth Danes should have a restraining order placed against her", the judge rules.

"May we have Jess Mariano to the stand?", a man calls. I stand up and Luke pats my back. I walk over to the stand nervously.

"Do you, Jess Mariano, swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?", the man oaths.

"Yeah, I swear", I answer raising my hand, unsure of how to respond at first. This causes a little chuckle from the crowd.

Luke's lawyer walks up to the stand after I sat down.

"Jess, how long have you been staying with Luke?", he asks me.

"A little over a year", I answer.

"What was the reason you were sent to live with your uncle?"

"Cause my mom didn't want me anymore", I answer.

This causes the crowd to gasp. Liz stands up sobbing again. "Jess, please!", she shouts.

"Order in the courtroom", the judge orders, hitting his gavel.

"Was there ever a time where you didn't feel safe in New York with your mom?"

I look over to my mom crying and sitting next to a scowling Frank, then back to Luke with his kind, comforting face. I don't hate my mom that much to say something that'll send her to jail, but I don't want to lie. I sit there unsure of how to respond.

"Remember, you swore to an oath to tell the truth"

I sigh. "Yeah, there was. But it was out of her hands. She would come home drunk, pass out, and whichever loser was sleeping over that week would do whatever the hell he wanted to me", I answer, forgetting for a second that I was in front of a jury.

"Did you always feel safe while living at Luke's?"

"Have you met Luke?", I chuckle, staring at his kind face. The crowd chuckles as well.

"Of course I did, he's so protective and loving. It gets annoying how nice he is. But yeah, I love him and I know he loves me. He's the first person whoa actually cared about me and put up with me", I continue, laughing.

Everyone in the courtroom laughs lightly and smiles, except for Liz and Frank. Luke is smiling ear to ear.

The lawyer pauses from his questions to smile as well.

"Did Liz call you during your year you spent away from her at Luke's?"

"I never got a call. She called Luke sometimes but never about me"

"Did you visit her at all?"

"She forced me to visit once, pretty recently actually before her ass of a boyfriend kidnapped me", I reply, getting a little more comfortable with my answers. Luke gives me a look to watch my language.

"What happened during this visit?"

"She claimed she wanted to spend time with me. Got drunk, was passed out most of the time, her boyfriend pretty much handicapped me for weeks, I went home to Luke who immediately took me to the emergency room"

"So, you were abused at your visit?"

"Yeah, but not by Liz. She just ignored it. It wasn't her fault though, she was drunk"

"Do you care if you ever see her again?"

I can see everyone is surprised by this question. I stare around the courtroom at everyone awaiting to hear my answer. Liz looks at me with pleading eyes. Frank avoids my eye altogether. Luke just smiles at me, and that comforts me more than anything.

"Maybe one day, after she fixes her problem. But for now, I'm happy with Luke. So to answer your question, my current answer for now, is no"

Some people in the audience gasp at this answer, but honestly if they met Liz, they wouldn't be so surprised.

"Thank you, Jess, that is all", the lawyer concludes. I nod and walk back over to Luke, who pats my back.

The lawyer looks through his documents then finally pulls out a page that he looks pretty happy to find.

"May I have Franklin Barnett to the stand?", the lawyer says. I look at Luke who's even more surprised than me.

Frank walks up to the stand angrily and sits down. They swear him to oath and he glares at me.

"Franklin, is it true that you kidnapped Jess?"

"What does this have to do with Liz's restraining order? Yeah I did, I'm going to jail, so what?"

Luke scoffs, narrowing his eyes at the man.

"So, someone ought to put you in your place, you asshole!", someone shouts from the crowd. Luke and I both recognize the voice, it belonged to Rory.

The judge hits his gavel again.

"Order please, order. Any further courtroom disturbances will be removed from the premises"

I look back at Rory and she smiles shyly at me. I smile back.

"Is it true that you physically abused your partner's son when he came to visit?"

"He was asking for it. Being a smart ass and all. Yeah, I put him in his place"

"What did Elizabeth have to say about it?"

"She didn't notice"

"Jess was admitted into a hospital with numerous bruises, a head injury, shoulder injury, back injury, sprained knee and many other body parts and you're saying that his mother never noticed?"

"That's right"

The crowd gasped again.

"That's all, thank you", the lawyer concluded. Frank hastily walks back to his seat.

"That's all the people I need to question, your honor", the lawyer announces.

"Thank you", the judge replies and the lawyer walks back to us.

The judge leaves the courtroom, I guess to make his decision and everyone has a 10 minute break. Lorelai and Rory rush over to us.

"This whole thing is so confusing, I thought we were here to stick it to Frank", Lorelai comments.

"They already stuck it to Frank at his trial yesterday", Luke explains.

"Oh man, we missed the good stuff", she pouts to Rory.

"We're here to sign off on the legal documents and to see if Liz will be allowed to see Jess again", Luke tells her.

"I brought you something", Rory says to me, handing me a book.

"Hemingway, thanks", I say.

"Figured you could sneak in a few quotes when you got bored", she explains.

I smile at her and she blushes. I go back to where Luke and I were sitting and begin to read, we only have like six minutes left of the break anyway. Luke joins me five minutes later when everyone in courtroom begins to take their seats. I put the book down when the judge walks back in and everyone stands. That's a stupid rule. Why do we have to stand overtime he walks in?

"The jury has reached a verdict", he declares.

"Full custody will be granted to Lucas Danes and Elizabeth Danes will be allowed to see her son, if her son wishes to do so, as long as she spends time in a rehabilitation program", he rules then bangs his gavel. The room cheers. Luke pulls me into a hug. "I love you, Jess", he says, while we're still hugging.

"Love you too, Luke", I reply. I don't think I've ever said that before.

Lorelai and Rory were the first to cheer and they were certainly the loudest. Rory runs to me and Lorelai runs to Luke, then Lorelai pulls all of us into a hug. Luke and i have to go over to sign some papers with Liz which we happily do. Frank and Liz are taken back in handcuffs.

"It's over, it's really over", I say to myself in astonishment. Luke pulls me into another hug which I happily accept.

I can finally call Luke's apartment home. Stars Hollow is my home. Right now, I really wanna go home.

* * *

 _ **VERY IMPORTANT NEWS:**_

 **Please, please, pleased review your thoughts on this fanfic. And follow me as an author, I'm starting another Gilmore Girls fanfic almost immediately. Thank you to all that stuck by me throughout this fanfic, i had a blast writing it, and i hope you had a blast reading it. Stay tuned, my next fanfic is** **starting tomorrow the latest. It's not going to have anything to do with this fanfic but my next one after that is going to be a sequel. So make sure you tap that follow button. Love you guys, have a great new year!**


	16. Update

**_A NOTE ABOUT THE STORY:_**

Hi guys! Remember how I said there's going to be a sequel? I decided to just continue the story on here, so stay tuned! I will begin writing the second part as soon as my current Gilmore Girls fanfic, "Brother, Brother", ends. Thanks!


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